Wishing You Could Take it Back
by Kichigai Hi
Summary: In trying times, you wish things would never again fail so badly. In trying times, all you want is to find solace and do all you can to succeed. In trying times... you should be careful what you wish for.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Avatar: The Last Airbender**

**Moving On**

* * *

They fled. They had no idea where they were going but they went anyway. The only things ahead were the dark abyss of night and uncertainty. The apprehension was tangible. Fear could be tasted on each of their tongues. No one knew what the present or future meant for them, all they knew was they couldn't go back. They'd had to leave. So they did. 

--------------------

The five people riding on Appa could get to sympathy, no help anymore. They were hunted, despised by their enemy. The only ones they could have trusted were their friends who were threatened by the enemy, and now, their former comrades in this war were far away, long gone. Why would strangers want to help an oddly-thrown-together group of depressing, lost travelers? Ones who were ruthlessly stalked to no end by a nation that was violent and relentless, now more than ever? A team aside whom trouble seemed to abide like a bee by dangerously sweet honey. Kind-looking passersby were just that - passersby, and amidst a harsh and ageless war, why would a simple civilian want to attract possibly hostile attention?

So the group was back to square one. No one to trust except for those so far away - by miles and by time - that is was futile to expect any sort of help from them. This time, all they had was themselves. All they could count on were their bruised, broken-spirited selves. On second thought, that was worse than square one.

Stars shone brightly on the face of one traveler, trying to illuminate the hope and contentedness that was no longer there. Thousands of tiny lanterns could adorn the sky but it wasn't enough... he knew none could ever take the place of the ever bright moon...

It was gone tonight, and he knew that the hours until daylight would be difficult as it wouldn't be there to give him strength - he looked to the mournful faces around him - and neither was anyone else. He couldn't see two of the faces but he was well aware of their own predicament, one because they were heard by restrained sobs, and the other, because he could not be heard at all. Sokka had tried desperately to be there for his sister but she was too busy trying to be strong for Aang and herself at the time to accept the little sympathy he could offer. He told her they were going through the same thing, but as he left, he realized that something was in fact different. He could tell by the way she told him he had enough problems to worry about, told him that she was better off left alone, with Aang. He'd slowly backed away, her eyes dark and filled with resentment as she continued to tenderly stroke his cheek... very much alone.

That didn't stop him from suffering as well, however. Sokka didn't have to feel her pain to know how much she hurt, or see her tears to know how much she cried. All he had to do was lie there and realize how much her tears of fourteen years resembled the tears of years ago from when she lost her favorite toy, to when their dad had left them, to when their mother had died. Just knowing his sister was hurting reminded him of the horrible experiences they had both had to go through before, and at times, were still going through now.

The pain would never leave them, Sokka discovered through his sister's cries and now his own unsought tears. They just had to learn to move on. He caught a glimpse of Katara trying to revive the body that lay next to her, no longer breathing._ Learn to move on_, he thought, and gulped. _No matter what happens_.

-----

Sokka coming to see her was a blurred vision in her mind's eye. Actually, it was most likely blurred to begin with - she had already been crying too hard to see clearly. She appreciated his concern, but she knew nothing would help anytime soon. She had thought, after seeing Aang open his eyes when she used her Spirit Oasis water, that he was healed, and that things could only go up from there. As she soon found out though, the fates would not have that be the case.

Katara had laid her friend's head against her once she had healed his wound. She wrapped her arms around him, holding him close for her comfort as well as his essential warmth. She could feel his steady heartbeat gently throbbing and decreasing as he fell into a deep sleep. She thought of all the events in that hard long day. She needed sleep badly. She sighed as she helplessly wondered who could have possibly known that the almost perfect invasion plan would turn into this? Sadly, Katara let another tear fall as she looked at her friend's motionless face.

And that's when she realized his heartbeat had never stopped slowing down.

Not a single pulse could be felt through his chest. The steady rise and fall of his diaphragm became imperceptible, then nonexistent. Katara panicked. She had healed him hadn't she?

Jumping up, Katara shook Aang's shoulders brusquely. "Aang," she whispered urgently. Nothing. Her tired mind could think of nothing to do and the fear coursing through her veins took the place of every other emotion. She had no water and her rational thought was rapidly fleeing from her as well. What could she do? She had to jolt him out of this; in a fit of nervous frenzy, she slapped him across the face. "Aang!"

Suddenly, he heaved a deep inhale of air and his pulse was once again normal. Shocked, Katara reached a tentative hand to Aang's red cheek, trying to rub the blood back through it. Wondering what was wrong with her mind, she whispered a small "sorry" in her friend's ear before her voice could crack further.

Katara slowly returned to her former position sitting down and made sure a firm hand could monitor the boy's heart. Unfortunately, she knew what this meant. She recalled the siege from the fire nation that killed her mother - she forced back a sob. Her father had been badly injured also and an elder would stay by his bedside and those of other gravely hurt villagers to make sure someone was there to keep their hearts beating.

All night.

Unbidden tears of fatigue fell like lead from her eyes. She normally wasn't one to cry pathetically, but these past few days... and this... this was an exception. Her best friend was a few breaths away from death and it was up to her to keep him alive.

There would be no sleep for her for a very long time.

-----

The emotional cloud that hung over the group was more than a bit suffocating. You didn't have to see anyone's face to know that they were either crying or close to it. Toph had learned long ago to fight for her own causes, no matter what it took, needless to say she wasn't a big fan or practitioner of emotional display - much less the type that involved water constantly dripping out of people's eyes. Yet, amidst all of this, Toph couldn't help but feel burdened by sadness herself, and "fighting for her own causes" seemed futile and pointless, now more than ever.

She remembered her life with her parents and realized the only sadness she had ever felt was the pain of enclosure and imprisonment. Feeling like a caged wild animal was horrible in and of itself, but ever since she had joined the group, she realized there was more to bad feelings than just those she had experienced. They themselves had lost family, ones they loved.

And so, she learned to feel how they felt and finally witnessed firsthand what this war had put everyone through. Sensitivity was something she expected from - yet didn't ask for - from everyone, but until somewhere in recent days, had never found any reason to give back. This in addition to the fact that now, she could _experience_ this pain firsthand was why she blindly climbed down from the albeit small sense of comfort on Appa's back to her two friends laying against his shoulders.

Following Katara's breathing, she safely made it to the other girl's side and sat there waiting for Katara to spark up a few words from her mouth. This was for Katara's benefit, not her own so to make it easier on Toph - because sympathizing was not part of her vocabulary anyway - the other girl had to play an active part in this. She wasn't about to look like a raving schizophrenic by having a one-sided conversation no matter how much it could help Katara.

Toph was concerned. Not an idiot.

After a few moments turned into minutes of silence, Toph frowned. When something was wrong and was bothering her, it was completely unlike Katara to keep her mouth shut for so long. For as long as she could remember, the waterbender had been relatively outspoken and was quick to mention anything nagging at her. Toph had figured that out_ very _early in their relationship. She placed her hand gently on her friend's shoulder to feel her erratic and shaky breaths. Her heartbeat was weak and fast... The poor girl was exhausted and terribly worried. Toph then felt Aang's chest, pushing away Katara's hand, hoping that she would be able to tell Katara that the boy would be okay - however, his pulse was much worse than hers. It threatened to halt at any given point in time and before Toph could do anything more, it did just that. She froze. So much for trying to encourage her friend.

"Um, Katara?"

Not a single additional word came out of her mouth before Katara's hand instinctively shot to Aang's neck to feel his pulse. She quickly realized the situation and proceeded to start feeling around for something. Toph couldn't tell what she was doing. She kept her distance, still gripping Aang's shoulder to sense his body's reactions to whatever she was trying to do. It provided her with an inside view of Katara's actions and gave her the ability to tell when Aang's heart would start up again... but by the looks of it, chances of revival were grim. Toph kept her hand from shaking as she vaguely felt Aang's chest contract and relax as if something were constantly freezing and melting. The sensation moved to the left of his chest and did the same. Toph felt nothing improve and she shuddered. This was a real person dying here right in front of her. She was strong but the binding fear of death was stronger. His skin felt cold. She bit her lip. It didn't matter that he was Twinkletoes, he was her friend. And she was dead scared.

She sighed. She had tried to avoid admitting it for the sake of her self-pride - her identity. If she wasn't "Toph the Strong", then who was she? She didn't want to be "Toph the Weak, Sweet Little Girl" since she had grown up like that and hated it. She didn't want to go back there, and yet she still cared deeply for her friends. She could be tough, but she was allowed to have feelings - and for her it was a fine boundary to walk.

Pride, to her, meant not looking like a wimp in front of those who know you to be strong. Doing that led to mockery which only led to more tears. She had to stay strong and lately, the need to be that way increased tenfold what with the war and the constant bickering from that horrible city of Ba Sing Se.

_Ba Sing Sucks_, she muttered mentally.

She'd practically cried in front of Katara that day and she felt pathetic when she thought of her reactions. But where could she draw the line between acting tough and acting hurt so that she could actually be herself? Toph sighed again. It had been a very long day and she must be immensely tired if the Blind Bandit, of all people, was having deep philosophical questions within herself. That was simply not Toph. It did help her figure out a few things though. On some occasions, it was good to be the stubborn, hardened soul that she was, but when around friends, she had to learn that she could relax and let go of an untruthful decorum.

She had never been able to do that in her entire life.

Crying in front of others meant letting them share some of the heavy burdens on your back. For once, she would let others - people she trusted with her life - carry that baggage for a while. In the face of pain, instead of hiding inside as the world screamed for her to do, she would trust those friends with her heart now as well. She could be the girl with feelings that she actually was, before going back to being same old annoying Toph. She no longer fought with the lump in her throat as she helplessly sat back, leaving her two friends with whatever destiny was in store for them. Come to think of it, they were the only two whom she had ever openly cried in front of. They were the only ones who ever saw tears drip from her eyes.

Salty rain licked Toph's cheeks as Aang still sat there with a sobbing brown head laying across his chest.

_And they would be again._

_-----_

He couldn't believe it. He was sitting here, aboard an otherwise extinct flying beast, fleeing from the very city which he ruled. The very city which had fallen, the very city which was now being controlled by enemy hands. It had merely been a day and a night since his happily oblivious world had come crashing down and pulled with it everything along its path. Lately, life had an odd way of swiftly yanking seemingly perfect trust out from underneath him, leaving nothing but a few war-hardened youths to fall back on. Even though they had stormed into his palace and had known him for but several hours, their trust seemed to be the most stable, so allowing him a rock on which to gather his bearings.

Amidst a raging sea of confusion.

As young a king as he was, his younger years were just barely etched into his memory. Courses and classes pervaded day after monotonous day and when something strange seemed to occur, he never asked questions. He had learned not to as this was the way he and every other king before him had been raised. Each question got bigger and bigger, but the nonchalance of the vague answer never changed.

Intimidating figures in low-tipped, pointed hats followed him like a shadow whenever he roamed the palace corridors.

_"Can I look in there?"_

_"No."_

_"Can I go outside?"_

_"No."_

_"Will you tell me where my parents are?"_

_"No."_

And a few days later: _"Will they come back?"_

_"No."_

Each response unhesitant, detached, without remorse nor scorn. He'd grown up with these feelings, even with his mother and father. Never in his life had he felt any distinct love from them, so it seemed unnecessary to give any in return, it was a fact of life. He had no reason to believe otherwise. He cared about his parents after they had left but it was another fact of life. It was normal. He had absolutely no reason to believe otherwise...

This was what Earth was all about: it was short, blunt, to the point, factual, devoid of hampering emotion. Whenever he asked, he was responded to. Everything was open, nothing was a touchy subject, so he didn't notice the lies or secrecy that revolved around the Earth Palace. He was always satisfied with a straight answer.

Even if those straight answers were always "No."

Childhood had then shifted into adulthood and he learned to leave the question-asking to others... advisors, the Dai Li, and everything worked out fine.

_Too fine_, he now knew.

Now, his Grand Secretariat had planned a conspiracy against the Earth Kingdom and the Avatar group's supposed "friends" turned out to be pure enemies. All that was left was a fallen monarchy - not that Kuei's power had ever spread much farther than the walls of his throne room - and a lone group of stragglers with no place to go. The meaning of safety was no longer relying on clandestine sources who kept you from the world, it was actually being independent and thinking for yourself. Being independent, and running... running very far away.

Despair suffocated them, even as brisk wind forced air into their lungs. They would not let it enter, however, it was enough to feel the cold grip tighten around them, they did not need it inside them as well. Hope was lost and death haunted them, ready to strike the weak, and left a coppery taste on their tongues. Fear bound them, and yet the King of Earth felt so free. There was now a new meaning to his life. He would no longer be mollified by negative, unconvincing responses, but had to learn how to fight and to rule. He had never done that before - not that he couldn't, but he'd never before had a need to. He would do it, he still knew how to gain authority, and his optimistic mind only helped further... and all thanks to a bunch of kids that literally showed up on his doorstep. Or barged in, rather.

He looked at them a moment in contemplation. he shook his head as he still could not swallow the extent of their vigor, bravery, and perseverance. Even in the short time he had been in their company, it had been glaringly easy to see their struggles and hurts. They, only children, had been through more than he or any other Earth King could probably ever hope to imagine.

He saw the warrior's solemn resolution and strength. He saw his own citizen's hidden wisdom and resilience. He could feel the waterbender's love and duty toward the Avatar who bound them all together. The Avatar was one person whom he couldn't quite understand, as his struggles seemed all too personal and hidden. Judging by his demeanor and the reactions of his friends, he hadn't been like this for long, but still he didn't dwell on it. The boy had yet to wake up and even as Kuei busied himself with reminiscing thoughts, he couldn't help but wonder... wonder if the world's last hope would vanish beneath his very eyes.

But detachment was still engraved in his nurturing. He cared, as usual, but he could do nothing. It was up to others to change this situation, not up to him. He could only pray that none of this had been in vain, that everything would work out. He slumped, suddenly feeling the weight of concern and deprivation of rapidly depleting adrenaline flood his eyelids. He sat, half awake, against Bosco who lowly groaned in mourning.

"I know Bosco," the king sighed, "I know."

The hopeless air escaped the hearts of no one.

Momo whimpered and curled around Toph's neck. She had returned to her previous position on Appa's back and absently stroked him as she struggled to calm her sleepless mind. Appa let out a cry of pain at seeing his best friend in this state. Sokka comfortingly pet his neck, staying silent.

An anguished voice whispered in the wind and landed on the ears of all, although its speaker had no knowledge it was heard.

_"Aang," _a broken voice pleaded. _"Why must you leave me?"_

It haunted them for the rest of the night.

--------------------

White, glowing eyes were all he could see. Luminescence and power seemed to float and fill the dark abyss. The observer took a step back in fear and for a moment paused - these eyes weren't directed toward him. Yet, he knew he was the reason that this power had been awakened. The reason for all that had happened. The reason that this power would soon overtake anything in its path.

The enraged eyes turned toward him.

Zuko ran.

His eyes burst open, adjusting to the view before him while catching his lost breath. He did not look around to find himself running, however. Instead, the light of daybreak splayed in through windows on a wall to illuminate the dark green and gold hues in the room. The regal ceiling above his face suddenly reminded him of where he was, and why, and he sighed in relief of the escape of his dream.

"Just a nightmare," he whispered to himself in the silence of early morning.

"What was, Zuzu?"

Zuko's body spun to the, now open, doorway on his left, angrily taking in the figure that leaned on its frame. He was too tired to retort however, and let the remark pass as he replied in subdued irritation. He closed his eyes. "What do you want, Azula?"

She stepped inside, green clothing and plain bun still adorning her body. "Now what kind of a way to greet your sister is that, _Prince_ Zuko?" she said, the words smoothly slipping off of her tongue. Not waiting for any response she continued, "We have a lot of ground to cover today." She laughed mirthlessly. "It hasn't even been a day and Ba Sing Se is already bowing to our feet, isn't that fantastic, Zuko?" _Those pathetic citizens. And they'd believed that the Earth Kingdom government was flawless._

As her eyes pointed toward him in anticipation of an answer, his own flickered to the oriental carpet beneath his feet. "Yeah," he said, distracted. Thoughts of just how they had come about that victory invaded his mind, though he tried to push them away. He had never truly seen the horrors and casualties of war before this. Images of his ashamed uncle, near-dead avatar, and the heartbroken waterbender forced him to acknowledge that he had never quite realized the consequences of the war... That he had never quite realized his decision would _ever _come to this...

Azula eyed Zuko suspiciously. "Don't worry, brother. When we return home, you will have the honor of capturing Ba Sing Se for your nation. Leave the issue of the Avatar to me." She strode over to Zuko, placing her hand on his shoulder. "Father will be proud to have his rightful heir back in the throne, where he belongs."

Slowly, Zuko nodded. Normally, he wouldn't have even responded. He wouldn't have listened to Azula's words since they had never meant anything before, but it had been three years since he had set foot on his beloved homeland.

_And he'd be back in line for the throne... with his honor._

That was all he had ever wanted. He knew that and so did Azula. That was why she confidently backed away from the bed and strolled out of the room, holding in a smile as she pressed the door closed. As soon as the latch clicked, though, her classic smirk appeared on her face once again. She left him to his musings, knowing without a doubt that things would go as expected.

It always amazed her how easy it was to mix truth with lies, how easily swayed one with no dedication was. She marveled over how easy it had been to pull Zuko into her cause -- to fight for her even though she would never dream of doing the same for him. She was aware of the difficulty of keeping him on her side, therefore knew the reason for his hesitation, but that was easily taken care of... she walked down golden halls mulling over her plan.

Saying he never was a traitor... _He already was one from his very birth._

Restoring his honor for himself... _He never had any honor to restore in the first place._

He still had hope for himself. It lie within a trap, he had no clue that the very redemption that he seeked was venom in and of itself. That was why this would work. Of course they were going back to their beloved nation. There was no doubt in her mind that he would be going back to where he belonged...

Except, where he belonged wouldn't necessarily be the throne.

Silent figures clad in green sneaked in the corners of the end of the hall. The two ornate gates on the far wall gradually opened for the petite girl who continued into the room, a satisfied look on her face. She climbed the steps and casually lounged onto the throne of gold. After brushing a strand of hair from her face, she turned to the man still kneeling on the ground before her, since her momentary interruption to check on her brother.

"Now," she stated. "Where were we?"

Long Feng scanned the writings of a tablet of paper that rested on his knee. "Ah. The issue of the Avatar."

Azula could still feel that crisp satisfaction after striking down the most powerful being on the earth. At first, she admitted, such raw power struck her and that emotion of awe came over her immediate senses... but then logic once again took control. Logic and reason were the only thing you could count on -- feelings just hindered progress. Zuko and that defenseless waterbender cradling a vulnerable body last night were a perfect example of that.

No one had been watching. She had waited, prepared, and struck, and no one had suspected a thing.

The outcome of this was, of course, accounted for; everyone worthwhile knew what happened to an Avatar killed in that all-powerful state. He had not seen the sense in leaving the Fire Nation to their war, so he had paid the price by being the one to break the cycle forever. It was a state induced by feeling, and look where it had brought him now. Airbenders never listened to reason, that was why _she _had won. It didn't matter what healers could do. She had known exactly what she was doing with that lightning, down to the point of entrance in his heel, and its exit from his back. She knew very well what she had done.

"Yes... the Avatar. Tell the Fire Lord that he will no longer be a problem to us." The man hastily scribbled on the pad.

"But, Princess, " Long Feng frowned and questioned the girl above him, "didn't he and his friends escape?"

"I assure you, they can do nothing without him." Azula continued with baleful pleasure. "It is my great pride to inform the Fire Lord--" Long Feng looked up expectantly.

"--that the Avatar is dead." Azula smiled.

* * *

**A/N: **_This is going to be my take on some issues of S3 and just a little of my imagination run wild. Hope you enjoyed! Reviews and criticism are greatly appreciated. _


	2. Reminiscence

Find mistakes? Think it needs work? Review. ;)

_Italics _indicate flashbacks.

* * *

Voices.

The low sighs and drone of soothing words gently flew in and out of the dark view, eventually replaced by smooth chattering from far away. The sounds felt calming, drowsy, as if listening to a dreamy lullaby... and yet, no particular word could be distinguished. The voices seemed non-vocal, as if moans and exhales could produce such narcotic songs that told you so much and still seemed inhuman. As if soft spirits wafted through receiving ears that welcomed the pacification they left. It was a smile. A poem. A sweet délice. Everything one wouldn't ever want to leave behind, so none ever did.

They didn't leave. It was the voices who left.

It was slow, it was gentle, the way the white haze that had comforted so many gradually slipped from grasp and faded off into the distance. As if you were being pulled from paradise and if you sadly reached out, you could almost touch them as they flew away. Almost. But not quite.

Sinister blackness would creep into the bare edges of view, a thin, benign frame that waited for the last wisp to flee, the last touch to subside, the final note on your ears to end before enveloping you with tender hands. A false impression. The fingers that held you up became claws that snatched you down. You were too busy mourning the loss of happiness to resist the burning grip of pain... because that's what this was. Pain.

The darkness was blinding. The voices, this time, led its listeners into trust with the soft whispers and then attacked the needy, defenseless hearts. These voices had no hearts. They were the evil demons that wanted to drag those they could reach into death with them and laughed with cold, hollow wails that simply dripped with suffocating emptiness. As if their very impenitence formed a vacuum that voided your lungs of the air it needed, deprived your soul of the release for which it yearned. Before, you were wanted, cared for, and now, all the voices pulled you down with words of reproach that you couldn't even understand. All that mattered was that you knew for what they scolded you. _You made a mistake. _You were simply all too aware of the reason for their derision. And that, was what scared those unfortunate victims above all...

_A scream echoed far away, slowly but oh-so-definitely surely, closing in on its intended target._

...because, no matter how much excessive scorn these perilous creatures had...

_The scream resounded closer._

They, those voices, were right.

--

Her eyes shot open.

The scream enveloped her mind.

She screamed in return.

Firm hands gripped her shoulders and she silenced and froze, staring at the black void above her in unadulterated fear. Still groggy, her ears could barely make out the sounds in the distance. They were speaking to her... except this time, they did not comfort or scold... they just...

_"Katara!"_

She jumped and spun her head into her brother's wide-eyed face. The nighttime dimness made it difficult to distinguish much else than his worried pupils. Her labored breaths gradually slowed and she leaned back into her pillow, eyelids pressed shut. She spoke softly.

"What happened?"

Sokka, reassured of her calmer frame of mind, relaxed his hold on her and moved back. "I could ask you the same question. You were screaming."

Katara raised her eyebrows in surprise. "I was?"

The scream suddenly pierced her ears once again and she instantly reached out to grab Sokka's retreating hand for reassurance. Concerned, he returned the pressure and she finally sat up and turned to face him.

"Sorry... I kinda had a bad dream... I-"

"Do you wanna talk about it?"

Katara looked at his sincere eyes and wondered where in the world his compassion had come from. She smiled and impulsively embraced him as he knelt down on the floor.

"Thanks, Sokka," she whispered fondly, "but I think I'll be okay." He nodded and she pulled away. "Did I wake anyone else up?"

"Just Toph." He motioned to a lump on the floor. "I was awake in the first place."

Katara sighed. "Oh... and..."

Sokka just shook his head. She sighed again. She looked at the stars through the window, noting the late hour. The last time she remembered being up it had been night as well. She hadn't realized she had fallen asleep, but judging by the fact that it was dark out, she couldn't have slept for long. Her thoughts turned to Aang, the incredible person that had almost slipped from her grasp that night... but was miraculously still hanging on. "I'm going to go check on him," she announced in between yawns. "But man, I'm tired."

Sokka shot her an incredulous look. "_Still?"_

It was Katara's turn to look confused, and a bit amused. "Sokka, I've only been sleeping a couple of hours." _And it was about time I woke up. Aang's condition is so unstable..._

Realization dawned on the boy's face. "Oh, so that's why you're not --" _--obsessively worried about him_, his thought finished. _She thinks it's only been... _He winced. "Um... Katara..." She frowned.

"What?"

"It's been two days."

"TWO--" Sokka clapped a hand over his sister's mouth as she started yelling. "You're gonna wake up the entire town. Yes, it's been two days."

_Two days. Oh my..._

"How's Aang?" She asked frantically. "Is he --"

"Yeah, yeah. He's been fine ever since you used that magic... water... heal-y stuff on him a few days ago. Don't freak out."

"How did I sleep so long?" she murmured. A voice piped up from behind Sokka.

"Maybe because you'd barely slept a wink for two _weeks _before that, Sleeping Beauty?"

The girl on the bed looked over inquisitively to see Toph standing with a quirked eyebrow, foot tapping on the floor. "You had us worried for a minute, you know," she admitted.

"Yeah. We didn't want you joining him over there." He tossed his head over to a still figure laying across from Katara. She followed the direction of his movement, resting her eyes on Aang, whose thin, still face harbored a fixed solemnity with his slightly furrowed brow. She simply stared wondering when in the world he would wake up.. _if _he decided to wake up. Katara tore her eyes away from him as Sokka spoke again.

"The only thing that kept us from panicking was the fact that you kept on mumbling and pushing my hand away if I touched you or picked you up." Katara nodded distractedly, then stopped, puzzled. "Wait - why did you have to pick me up? Unless we had to --" she broke off, glancing around the room and recalling a few of Sokka's earlier words in an instant of sudden realization.

_"You're gonna wake up the entire town."_

_I don't remember being in a town. I don't recognize any of this..._

"We had to move again didn't we?"

Sokka opened his mouth to respond to his sister but Toph spoke first. "Yup. The Fire Nation sticks to us like white on Appa. It's like they're hound wolves tracking us down and our very scent just screams, 'Avatar and Friends'." She sat down again, pulling her arms around her knees. Katara frowned.

"Why didn't you wake me up? This would have gone a lot faster --" Toph interrupted.

"Yeah, you do know there's a reason why I call you 'Sleeping Beauty', Sleeping Beauty. We tried, but we figured we'd have to wait for some Prince charming to come along before you'd ever open your eyes again." Katara grunted. She did _not _want to be reminded of princes - or princesses for that matter - anytime in the near future.

Feelings of frustration instantly melded into grim resentment, its vibrations feeling down along the wood-framed mattress and across the floor into receiving limbs. Toph frowned. Other than significantly restrained sarcasm, the girl couldn't identify any mistake she had made in that last statement, therefore couldn't comprehend Katara's sudden anger. She was being particularly selective in her words in memory of the results of last time the group had been exhausted and constantly on the move. As much as she had been the one to leave and appear aloof throughout most of the ordeal, she still remained immensely wary of how she came across. She truly loved her friends - though she herself might not necessarily use that terminology - and couldn't imagine leaving them again... or having them leave her.

Her friend's heartbeat fluctuated. It was silenced for a moment before being restarted hard and irregularly.

Fear.

Which, inherently, brought Toph back to the nights after the fall of her nation's capital - not that she cared for it much - but it was what happened in those long hours of worrying and fleeing from enemies that hurt the most... and eventually, it brought to mind who had woken up Toph in the first place. Or, perhaps more importantly:

_What._

The scream. Awakened by a nightmare, a pained, terrorized lament, as if it were a mourner's keen. And maybe it was. Death had already come and gone for one of them... All hoped it would not return to claim what life had taken back.

Toph couldn't remember the last time... if there even were a time... she had heard Katara be so shaken by a simple dream. Unless... it wasn't a simple dream. She felt the girl's heartbeat repress into forced calm and instantly refrained from asking any questions about it. She was trying to hide it, forget about it, and after knowing how she acted the past two weeks, Toph knew she'd do a good job of it too. In other words, Toph knew none of them were going to get an answer anytime soon. Sokka narrowed his eyes at his sister's change of mood, looking as if a wall had shut behind her eyes and no emotion would escape it.

She climbed down the cot and placed her feet on the floor, slowly rising, making sure she regained her balance before taking a step. She roamed her eyes around the room taking in the presence of only two mattresses. Her look rested on Toph, who had leaned back onto the ground, then on Sokka whose mostly-lidded pupils grew even heavier with each passing second.

"You should really get some sleep."

He jolted and looked at her, about to decline when she spoke again.

"Who knows how much you and Toph have slept. I'm perfectly fine now, and I can take watch while you two sleep." He frowned for a moment, then nodded.

"All right," he agreed. Momentarily forgetting the girl's blindness, he pointed to the bed and asked, "Toph, do you want it?" She opened her eyes at the mention of her name.

"What?"

The warrior almost smacked himself on the head and rephrased his query. "Do you want the bed, or are you okay there?"

She thought a moment, already knowing her answer but nonetheless taking the time to remember the last time she actually did sleep on a bed. It had already been about three months since she had taken to the routine of sleeping on the earth as opposed to those lush, warm pillows and sheets she'd grown up in...

"Nope," she announced and abruptly closed her eyes and snuggled into the dirt. Sokka stood, snatching a last glance at Katara.

"You sure?"

She nodded.

She turned away to look at Aang when she heard her brother's snores softly sound before his head could even hit the flattened pillow. She allowed herself a small smile and then began to turn toward the door to keep watch outside. A hoarse voice cracked out an unintelligible word. She paused, and slowly turned around to its maker. His lips moved again. Aang. She rushed to him, marveling at the sound, however choppy. For the first time in weeks, he had actually moved. All her thoughts of keeping a lookout quickly slipped from her mind.

Katara lowered herself to Aang's bedside and waited for any further change in his condition. Her high hopes fell with each passing minute and finally she sighed, shoulders slumping. She let her hand cup his cheek, then forehead for any sign of the rampant fever that had subsided only a few days prior. Satisfied, she pulled his shoulders up to glance at the scar on his back. The burnt skin still framed the wound, making it stand out as a bitter reminder against his pale flesh. Katara scanned the floor around them, until her eyes fell upon a wooden basin in a far corner. She flicked her wrist up, lifting a stream of clear water from it and she brought it over and wrapped it around her hand. His eyebrow twitched a bit before his face relaxed once again, as she pressed it against his back.

Words could never describe how relieved she was after they had finally found water again. She had needed it to help him as soon as dawn broke after the fateful day of the capital, but never found a good enough supply until days later. That didn't stop her from healing him though. She smiled grimly; she'd found a way.

Katara placed him back into the bed, letting her fingers rest on his bare arms. She trailed them down to his hands before turning her attention to his thin stomach and ribs. They could easily be counted and even his face was suffering from malnutrition as his cheeks were almost hollow and his jaw was narrow and sharp. It amazed her how thin he could get -- not to mention it sickened her half to death. He had already been a lean kid before becoming ill and falling into his endless coma. Now, he looked as light as a feather, frail as a film of glass that would break if held too hard. He used to be strong, now he was weak and defenseless. It infuriated her how Azula could have done this to her best friend. He appeared as if he should have died of starvation long ago. If he kept this up... that option wouldn't necessarily be far-fetched.

Still, she was eternally grateful for the improvement in his condition. From the night of the corruption of Ba Sing Se until over a week after she had thought she was going to lose him. She didn't even want to think about what would happen if she did. The Avatar had a promise to fulfill; Aang had his entire life ahead of him. It was obvious who the world wanted most: the one who could save them from tyranny and oppression, but with one came the other, it didn't matter which was more important.

That was why she felt the weight of emotion and responsibility on her shoulders that night. Whatever she did, he had to survive, whether it was for her friend to live or her rescuer to fight another day. Was there a difference? The promise of the Avatar had saved her from desperation, but maybe Aang had in fact rescued her from something too...

She shook her head to clear her mind of thoughts she wasn't ready to deal with, they were trivial. The face over which death loomed could not escape her eyes. The serenity of night clashed with aggrieved recollections that flickered behind her frozen blue. She gripped his hands and leaned over his face as if willing the life in him to not leave as she recalled the night that she thought would never cease. The night she decided which part of him she was desperately trying to save was irrelevant -- he had to be fine. If he didn't, the world would never recover... and on two counts, neither would she.

--

_The sunrise. After a hopeless and seemingly endless night, the rising light in the east behind them was more than welcome to the travelers. As they made their way among the clouds, the group felt the growing heat of morning come upon them, making them squint their weary eyes. Sokka still sat, gaze fixed on whatever was ahead, struggling to stay awake. The Earth King sat against Bosco, and Toph leaned against Sokka, clutching his arm as the sky rushed by. None of them had slept a wink._

_Katara lay still on Appa's head, clutching Aang close to her. Besides him, she was the only one who had slept; the emotional turmoil from the day before had been too much. She looked to the sun and absently wondered where they could possibly go. All of their safe havens were useless, either invaded or would make them stray too far from where they had to go... but, now, where did they have to go? Now that this city had fallen, what would they do? Katara looked down to the sleeping figure of her friend -- except, she knew it wasn't sleep he had fallen into. She winced at his deathly unconscious state. You wouldn't know it by the slight twitches as he lay there as if in a dream, it was the face of his worried friend that told it all._

_Katara had woken up to a slowly dawning sky and the rustling of clothes directly above her. She hadn't meant to sleep -- she was too worried to willingly let Aang go. The darkness had claimed her, only to spit her back out in a drench of sweat and panic when her subconscious had taken the liberty to remind her of the duty that lay beside her... and the consequences of failing._

_Luckily, Aang had maintained a stable condition after Katara left him last, and with the day, seemed to come a new hope and calm. She didn't know just yet that this peace would eventually leave along with the day as well._

_--_

_The previous night had been a horror. So many times she had almost lost her friend, she had begun to break down in fear before struggling on. She had to do something to save him but what?. She hadn't understood why, at first, that he still appeared to be injured after her healing. She only went with the imminent danger that threatened and did whatever she could think of to revive him. But why? Why hadn't the Spirit Oasis water not done the job? He had been fine, if only for a while... It appeared as if it had repaired something else, just not Aang's body..._

_But that still didn't change the problem of the long, painful hours before that morning had bloomed..._

_She had to heal him. Water was the only thing that would help her now. She reached to pull Sokka's tunic to tell him to go grab the water canteen she kept in the saddle above... before realization smacked her, head on._

_There is no saddle. All that was stolen along with Appa._

_...and then reached to her side in case she had in fact left it on her body..._

_Before realizing that Azula had stolen her canteen when she had been suddenly captured. She had never taken the time, with all that had happened thereafter, to go back for it... She would use the Spirit Oasis on him so why waste the time? They had to get out of there. Why would she need it anyway?_

_Just one more mistake made that day._

_The ground below was covered in black velvet treetops. The air was dry, if a small river were trailing through the forest, she couldn't feel it. They would never find it, either, not before being attacked by the ever-present soldiers that hunted them. In a last ditch attempt to find her element, she looked above to the perfect sky._

_The perfectly, cursedly cloudless sky._

_Toph's presence had escaped her mind until then, when she looked to the girl on her right. She was stunned that Toph cared enough to come down there, but Katara couldn't even begin to describe what she was going through. Toph wasn't going to start conversation and she needed to get over the life and death situation first... and then the voice beside her finally rang out -- but with a dangerously anxious fluctuation. She was too lost in thought and stress to make out the words. Hearing the tone was warning enough._

_Instantly, Katara's hand touched his slowing pulse as Toph retracted her own. Katara worriedly bit her lip as she once again felt Aang's life rapidly slipping away from him. All other thoughts and people around her were forgotten anew, she knew enough to realize his body needed to be jolted into working again. She remembered what she had instinctively done earlier but refrained from it, not only because she felt horrible to purposely pain her friend, but because she had a dreading feeling that it would only work once. It had worked because he had never been slapped in this vulnerable position before. It was surprising, but now, his body had been through much more than a simple hit. She held her head in her hands._

_He needs water... he needs to be healed at the same time._

_She had none though, and considered performing her earlier action again before coming to another conclusion. She needed to get right down to the root of the problem. She needed to shock that into doing its job. His blood had to get moving through the water that was in it, by using more water._

_Suddenly, something struck her. She sat bolt upright._

_This is crazy, but..._

_--_

_And lo and behold, it had actually worked._

_She soberly sat back, sun beginning to graze the top of her head. The unexpected side effects had its drawbacks, but it was worth it. It was worth it for him. She sighed._

_--_

Pressure suddenly appeared on her left shoulder. Shocked into turning around, she let her eyes adjust to the black of the room, finally focusing on two sage eyes partially hidden by black bangs. She let out a breath she hadn't realized she had held, in relief of the familiar face.

"Toph."

Toph held a gentle smile and slightly raised brow; Katara did a double take at the girl's softly amused expression. Where did her hardened irony go?

"You really care a lot don't you," Toph seemed to demand of her, as more of a statement than a question. It wasn't as if she didn't know the answer. Katara just nodded dumbly, still reeling from the abrupt end of her reverie and the new personality that stood before her. Eventually, she came back to earth and shot a confused glance at the girl. What was she doing here anyway?

"Why..."

Toph cut in, sincerely sweet visage intact, "Because I wondered why I felt a stampede of soldiers with metal weapons pass right by us and no one came to warn us. 'Cause I realized _who _was supposed to be guarding and realized _what _could have possibly distracted them." She cocked her head, sarcasm and mirth overtaking the rapidly lifting corners of her mouth, as she pointed to Aang.

A haze of fatigue and thoughtfulness had already set back upon Katara's mind. She inattentively heard Toph's words, only trying to understand them once she ceased her speech and drew a finger to the boy by her side. Once again she responded in a faraway nod and sorted out the muddled phrases in her mind.

_...metal...stampede...guarding...distracted...soldiers...Aang..._

_...supposed to be guarding but distracted by Aang... stampede of metal with soldiers... er... soldiers with metal..._

_...soldiers with metal who passed right by us..._

Her eyes popped open. "_What?!"_

Sounds of incessant laughter were heard from the ground as Toph rolled around clutching her stomach.

"Your... heheh... reaction... hahahah... was_ classic_! Too-- took you long enough though!"

The waterbender stole a glance at the window to outside before asking worriedly, "Are they gone? Is everything okay?"

"Every thing's _great, _Sugar Queen!" she responded erupting into giggles, which only intensified when Sokka loudly snored in irritation of the noise. Katara just stared bemusedly at the girl on the floor. "Are you done making fun of me yet?" Toph sat up and wiped her eyes. She yawned. "You make it sound like... it's a bad thing," she said, recovering from her fit of laughter. "You're the one who would've gotten us barbecued quicker than roast duck."

Katara schooled her startlement into mild surprise so as not to set off her friend again. "You mean, _you were serious?_"

"Of course I was." Toph appeared mock-offended. "Why would I lie to you?" As Katara examined her friend's jovial face, she could think of plenty of reasons...

_But the Fire Nation was here, what if they had actually found us?... Great going Katara._

She sighed. "I'm sorry... I'll pay more attention next time. You can go back to sleep, Toph..." Katara hurriedly got up, noticing her close position to the body next to her, and started toward the entrance of the shack. A small, yet strong hand pulled on her pants leg to keep her back. Katara looked back down at Toph's once again serious features.

"Don't worry, I'll do it."

Katara frowned and shook her head. "No, you need res--"

"I'm not even tired anymore. I'm bored and you have-" she waved her arm toward Aang "-other things to do. You're tired Katara."

The other girl had to agree with that. She'd slept the equivalent of a week's worth of sleep... now she had the second week to catch up on. Toph stood and walked to the other side of the room to the door. "And anyway," she added cockily, "I'm better at it." She walked out the door.

Katara looked after her in thought. _That was Toph for you._

Slowly, she turned back and faced the Avatar. She strode back to him and dropped to the ground beside him, resting her back in the nook between the head of his cot and the wall on which it was. She placed her arm on the low mattress, next to his, and closed her eyes. She wearily cracked them open again to finger the small growth of hair on his scalp.

_Please, Aang. Wake up..._

She let her head fall back into the memories that sleep encumbered. Her dream was still fresh in her mind. _What did it mean? _But inside, she knew very well what it meant... and it scared her. No one had to know though, it was a one time event and soon wouldn't matter anymore... at least that's what she thought.

Half-lidded eyes finally closed as she chased away the discomfort in her head.

_Just don't think about it, Katara._

What she didn't know, was the fact that two others had dreamt of the exact same thing... one with her in this very room, and the other... one she would so much rather not think about at all. Those frightening images and sensations never returned, however. Instead, they were replaced by other situations... situations closer to the present... situations she would so much just rather forget. Yet, for some reason...

..._they _didn't want her to...

* * *

**A/N: **_Dang that was long! I didn't think I could cut it otherwise I would've. Tell me if you like it, tell me if you hate it. Thanks, if you read this far down._


	3. Sliver of Hope

Here it is! (Finally) Seriously I don't know why these chapters are this long...

THANKS TO MY REVIEWERS! Knowing people are following this pushed me to write faster.

* * *

She shut the door behind her and plopped onto the welcoming dirt. She drove her feet into it, as much as to get a good feel of it as to be more acutely aware of the vibrations around her. She snapped her head back to lean it on the door and exhaled heavily. It was a long time till morning.

And she was bored.

Yes, when she had told Katara this, it was in fact true, and Toph was always grateful to be relieved of it and have something to _do_. Not that this was much of anything...

Personally, she would have rather slept in and just get rid of reality completely, but that was not something she could do. Not anymore anyway. She remembered what she had said. "...not even tired anymore." She scoffed. Yes, when she had told Katara this, she was in fact _lying_, and the problem didn't quite rest in the fact that she wouldn't sleep... she simply couldn't... not with Snoozles back there desperately trying to live past his title. She seriously should have called him 'The Snore Machine', they just kept right on coming.

Unfortunately, Sokka held a nasty habit of breaking Toph's sleeping time with his ceaseless noises, the night that he had finally been able to catch slumber fresh in her mind... for more reasons than one. Truthfully, she could march right through that door and earthbend a rock to stuff Sokka's mouth, but oddly enough, she didn't have the heart. She wasn't even supposed to be sleeping anymore so that wouldn't do her much good... besides help rid herself of the boredom. Anyway, Katara was probably already in dreamland again next to the human lightning rod back there, and basically...

Toph was simply too lazy, and if she were passing up a perfect opportunity to annoy the people she traveled with just to amuse herself, something was intensely amiss. Not that she didn't already know that, but it was just another painful reminder that somehow, nothing would be the same. Three months it had been since the runaway twelve-year-old had given up safety for freedom, confinement for joy. She shook her head in amazement. It stunned her how she felt now. Her friends could never understand the depth of her happiness after leaving those that loved her as a handicapped daughter and joining the friends that loved her as _Toph._

Did that mean she had to miss out on priceless chances to laugh at them? No.

Did that insinuate that she'd rather have them hug her than use one of them as boulder target practice? Of course not. She loved them... in her own, very special way. Toph grinned.

The wind whipped by her face as she rested her arms on her knees and seemed to stare at a nonexistent object at the edge of the home's modest porch. How long had it been since they had been on the run from the Fire Nation? Already an entire day. _A new record,_ she thought. That was what worried her the most. True, after the first week or so of constantly being on the run, they had seemed to relent on their forces. They were probably all heading to Ba Sing Se -- especially with the group of the Avatar out of sight for so long. She smiled in satisfaction as she remembered how they had all managed to make a clean getaway each time. It didn't hurt that the soldiers had also stumbled across the fiery remains of a village with a waterskin near four unrecognizable bodies huddled together in the corner of a room. Toph grimaced and she knew the others had done the same in sympathy. The leader of the town in which they stayed had told them that... along with Azula's victory speech from two weeks before in the Earth Kingdom capital. They were thought dead... an advantage. Would they have to give up that upper hand once they started traveling again? -- would they have it taken away once they were caught? That result would be inevitable if nothing changed. They had always had two nations to count on, one to run from. Now... who did they have?

Absolutely no one.

Their tactic had been 'gain trust with Avatar, fly in plain sight to Ba Sing Se.' Now it was: 'hide Avatar from everyone, run undercover to...' where? At this rate, they would be captured and all of their efforts would crumble beneath their fingertips. They needed a plan change. They needed to blend in with the scenery, so to speak. That had been the reason - among other obvious hinders - no one had bothered to shave Aang's head while he slept for so long. Truth be told, Toph had been positively apathetic about it, but Sokka seemed to have a riot as he laughed at the apparently short, new growth of hair on the other boy's head. One simple laugh had been a saving grace that day too... all of this tension was about to kill them from the inside out. Toph understood the need to change their plan of action... she just did not like where it was going...

She left change to the Water Tribes. Earth was perfectly fine how they were -- at least, that's what she could tell herself for the time being.

She sank completely onto the ground, laying her head back atop her intertwined hands. With her fingers flush with the floor, she could easily feel the vibrations coming from the forest on the other side of the relatively wide town. She'd had plenty of practice, she had to say, what with constantly doing this day in and day out ever since she woke up the morning after landing on solid ground. It grew tiring, but it was worth it; without her, the group wouldn't have lasted a day while on the run. She slowly relaxed her breathing while letting the fast-moving events of days ago catch up with the girl in an even faster-paced band of fugitives.

_Finally. Relaxation..._

_--------------------_

_Those were the exact words of Toph Bei Fong as she hit the dirt in a none-too-graceful belly flop. The abrupt jarring of the passengers' weary bodies had signaled the termination of the long ride and eyes jerked open from their half-open droop at the realization that for the first time in who knew how long, earth was once again at their feet. Obviously, this did not go unnoticed by one ecstatic bender as she gratefully embraced her native element. Sokka followed her as he slid to the ground from Appa, carefully watching his sister. He opened his mouth to speak, but Toph beat him to it._

_"Finally. A place that's nothing but land for miles around."_

_Katara paused in her slow steps. "Wait, no rivers?"_

_"Uhn uhn."_

_Katara's shoulders immediately slumped. Sokka walked up to her. "Katara?"_

_She turned around, revealing an unconscious boy in her arms and a long, tired expression. Sokka almost did a double take at her face -- he had known she was exhausted, but she looked absolutely sick; her lips were chapped and she appeared to be shaking and drowsy. He approached her to place a hand on her forehead. "Are you alright? You look like you have a fever." Katara's eyes widened for a moment but she shook her head and pushed his hand away._

_"I'm fine. I just need a place to put Aang..."_

_The warrior looked at Katara quizzically. Why was she so adamant about keeping him away when it came to her well-being? It had been this way during the latter part of the trip into this forest. "Are you sure? I hope you're not coming down with something."_

_Katara looked surprised at the statement of his fears but then she visibly relaxed. "No, no it's okay." She smiled. He nodded. Katara sadly looked down at the body that she carried, with his arm around her neck and her own around his waist as she supported his dead weight... she gulped. 'Dead'..._

_Sokka turned and walked a few steps to Appa. "I'll go get him my sleeping roll," he told her, before Katara reached out to pull him back. He turned to catch Katara shifting Aang's position in her arms._

_"Sokka," she sighed, "It's alright. Go get mine -- it's not like I'm going to be sleeping anyway."_

_He frowned. What? Now she wasn't even going to sleep? She looked horrible. "Katara, you have to eventually. You'll never last --"_

_"I'll get rest as soon as he gets better, I promise," Katara said firmly. Her face relaxed, then. "Please."_

_Sokka exhaled. "Fine." He spun on his heel and climbed the white beast. "But I better not find out you've been up all night!" he called over his shoulder._

_"I won't, don't worry."_

_Toph lay face first on the other side of the clearing and let sleep consume her tired being, vaguely aware of Sokka joining her later. "Mmm sleep." She was much too far gone to catch the other girl's lie._

_-----_

_Katara gently lay Aang onto the blue fabric, taking care to ease the pressure that came upon his back. Katara readied her hands into a waterbending pose in front of him, but paused. She looked around their campsite to see Sokka and Toph fast asleep a few meters away from each other. Toph's lips mumbled something into the dirt and Appa lay at their heads, also sleeping. Good. No one watching. There was no fire, in order to not attract attention to themselves, but the early summer night was warm in any event._

_Losing concentration, Katara let her hands drop to land on Aang's torso. She pulled her hands away, suddenly shocked -- she felt as if she'd been burned. She touched his head. Aang was running a fever._

_No. He would have been fine._

_The realization that his wound had become infected came over her. She needed ice and had no medicine to help him. The forest's vegetation was foreign, all she could do was suppress the heat that seemed to radiate off of his body in pulsing waves. He had been fine not five minutes ago... who knew how long this rapidly appearing sickness would last? Aang suddenly twitched and began to shiver violently, a prelude to beginning to moan in pain._

_Water. She needed water._

_Toph had already told them that this land was nothing but flat, dry dirt... at least until they reached the desert. That meant nothing to drink, nothing to heal with. The others didn't mind so much -- they'd had enough to quench their bodies' thirsts the day before. Her, on the other hand... Spirits, her mouth was dry. She'd need a lot to help Aang, but she'd just have to settle with the little she had. There was nothing else to use... Katara grit her teeth._

_It had to be done._

_Here goes nothing..._

_--------------------_

A high-pitched, strangled scream emanated from in front of the house. Katara, oblivious as she slept with her head on the edge of Aang's bed, heard nothing. More voices came from outside.

"Augh, Snoozles, _I'm _the blind one here, ya know..."

Sokka looked at the girl on the floor with a grimace on his face as he watched her clutch her stomach in pain. "Sorry, Toph. I, um, didn't see you there. Did I hurt you?" _Real smart question, Sokka. As if it isn't obvious..._

By this time Toph had stood up and began to glare at him -- he wondering how she could possibly manage to put so much disdain in her blind eyes. "No, Sokka, you only stepped all over me," she retorted, still rubbing her abdomen. "What are you doing out here at this time of night anyway?"

"I was gonna take over for Katara... but I guess I'll take over for you instead. I thought she was taking watch."

Toph nodded as she lowered her body to sit down. "Yeah, she was, but she got kinda sidetracked before she even got outside." Sokka looked back through the open doorway to see the vague outline of his sister with the waning moonlight of early morning. "Aang said something when she was leaving, so she stayed. I found her there and told her I'd do her job instead."

"I didn't see her." Sokka absently smiled at Toph's slight kindness and sat himself next to her. Slowly he looked up to watch the crescent of light descend behind the dark treetops.

"Why do you like the moon so much?" Toph asked, then said, "I assume that's what you're looking at."

Sokka murmured affirmatively. "It's a long story."

"Care to share? I've got time." Toph knew she was taking a slight risk delving into other people's business. It appeared to really affect him and she half-expected a response to brush her off. To her surprise, he agreed. He sighed.

"It all started a couple months before we met you. We had to find Aang a waterbending master at the North Pole..."

_--------------------_

As soon as the sun shone upon her face in the early morning hours, Katara opened her eyes and stretched. The window of the wall on her left gave an only slightly obstructed view of the blooming dawn and the pungency of dewy flowers from the nearby woods filled the room. Katara closed her eyes and deeply inhaled the aroma of the bright, cloudless morning. _Today would be a good day, _she thought.

Something was amiss, however. The very feel of the room was warmer, unlike the cold, gray dirt walls that pervaded the usual Earth Kingdom homes. She opened her eyes at the nagging discomfort in the back of her mind. Abruptly, she sucked in a breath.

Why were the ceilings _red?_

Katara burst up and looked about her surroundings. Was she so tired the night before that she didn't see the blaring Fire Nation insignia hanging above Aang's body? Her senses were screaming for her to run -- get out of sight of the mocking red walls that seemed to place death upon all they encountered. _She could still see Azula's fiery eyes that held a murderer's pure malice. _With a flickering expression of pain, she forced her eyes shut to rid herself of the memory... if only it were easier to shut the eyes of her mind.

Katara looked up again and began walking to the entrance of the door, only to find it already ajar. _Why was the door open? Where was everyone? _She glanced at Aang's peaceful body for reassurance of his safety before opening the door uncertainly. Sokka lay with his arms sprawled behind him and Toph was lying face down into the dry dirt -- in a moment of worry, the other girl started at seeing her friends' bodies, but, soon relaxed at the sound of her brother's sudden snore.

"Guys," she whispered harshly. She needed to ask them what the group was doing in the midst of a Fire Nation town, or perhaps, more specifically, she just needed Sokka. She bend down and shook his arm. To her amazement, he immediately got up and peered at through foggily narrowed eyes.

"Toph?" he asked groggily. "Oh, Katara."

"Sokka," she began, still eyeing her surroundings warily, "why aren't we still in the Earth Kingdom?"

"We ar--" but then he stopped, realizing what she wanted to know. "Well, a few days ago, we would have been, but the Fire Nation just took this town." Katara seemed bemused.

"And that makes being here so much better because..."

"The leader of the village can't fight back, but he's on our side. He knows we have the Avatar" -- Katara's eyes widened -- "and gave us this place on the outskirts of the town so it's out of the way of any wandering people."

"What if the solders come? What if they're here already and are just waiting to --" Sokka clapped a hand over his sister's mouth.

"You worry too much." He lay back down with his hands behind his head. "The leader's coming by to give us some robes and another bandage. He told me he'd do it as soon as he could without arousing suspicion."

Katara nodded slowly. "Don't the other citizens know we're here though? I mean, they're going to notice something."

"They've been told that we're the first new Fire Nation settlers. We can walk around town without attracting... well, we _would _but we have a problem with our clothes. We'll deal with that --" Sokka yawned "-- later."

"Right..." Katara began to walk back in. "Um, Sokka, don't you think you could stay awake just in case... because Toph is still asleep..."

"Think again," Toph muttered. "You have no idea how irritatingly loud you two are." Sokka bit back a remark, while Katara just looked down staying silent. She stood there, then walked inside the house unnoticed.

_--------------------_

_I'll figure it out later, he told himself, even though the pestering voices in his head told him there was no turning back after this. He'd already made his choice, however - what possible harm could waiting do? - and unexpectedly, his friend's teary gaze and smile tore through the numbness of his heart and his former, hopeful dream took hold of him tightly once again. The pleading screams in his ears came to a halt... if it were because they were satisfied or resigned because of his fate, he would never know._

_Reality slowly faded into the blackness that would be his home for long after, a place where time was irrelevant and memories were abandoned once he'd leave it. His eyes would open eventually, but not before he'd forget his grave decision... that just might decide to haunt him again one day. His senses faded with his awareness and he lapsed into the nightmares that threatened to become reality, a danger that went unnoticed by the wounded soul of the sleeping Avatar. Pain was distant, as was his destiny, so he let it go to succumb to the hands that pulled him down..._

_...watched by curious eyes from afar who had made their decision as well. And, just like him, there would be no turning back._

_--------------------_

No one was inside the house, save for a lone waterbender in the far corner of the room. For some reason, the brightness of the early summer wildlife could no longer penetrate through the room's thick atmosphere. Light seemed to dim as soon as its shafts hit the partly curtained window, causing it to halt stagnantly in the air. Tiny dust particles floated by, highlighted by the rays that never quite reached the far, dark recesses of the room... a single stool in the center of the floor crossed the shine of the light... the looming symbol of fire on the wall across from the door was shrouded in darkness.

Katara sat with her legs crossed beneath her, next to the entrance of the room, the other feature which was not touched by the sun. her arm slowly rose and lowered above the wooden basin which carried a small amount of water. The tiny stream followed her hands as her eyes stared ahead, frozen in the memories of yesterdays that had happened not too long ago. The stillness was barely broken by the muted sound of falling water.

She couldn't bear to watch the contorted face of her companion as he twisted his way through his maze of nightmares -- she couldn't deal with the present just yet. It was strange that in one of the most haunted visions of her past, there were no screams of fear, no howls of pain... instead, the vicious images encumbered only silence.

Just like now.

A distinct chill went through her and she shivered. The bowl was pushed back to its position under the table next to her and Katara sat staring at the crimson panels of the home. Everything that the dreaded nation touched became red, it seemed.

_The red banners across the fallen Omashu._

_The very red haze that followed wherever the Fire Country happened to spread._

_The life of people rapidly flowing out of their bodies as they are struck down by sneering faces. Red trailed them there too._

A light moaning in the space near her did not completely register in her brain -- it was only another sound from outside, deadened by the stifling oppression. But then it sounded again. Katara's ears perked up at a voice she hadn't heard in so long.

"I... can't..." The mumblings faded off incoherently.

Jumping up instantly, the girl rushed to the other side of the room to the body of Aang.

_--------------------_

Light. Light was everywhere... the first thing his shot senses could distinguish. He felt numb, the only thing he noticed was the gradual darkening of his surroundings after becoming accustomed to the sudden brightness. Obviously, something bad had happened to him, but he didn't bother trying to remember what... he slowly tried to move his fingers hoping that the same fate had not befallen his friends. Next, sound came to him; as the stiff board beneath him revealed the toll it had taken on his back, a soothing voice filled his ears and his tense muscles relaxed. For the moment, the past had no hold on him, sweet bliss was all that mattered... until the black and scarlet scenes of a nameless battle raged within his memory. Immediately, his eyes opened widely, but they could see nothing more than ethereal blurs of blue and red with blackness trying to cloud the edges of his sight. He struggled against the blurred visions, screaming for his friends -- what if that nightmare he'd had were real? He could see his own bloodied hands as Toph and Sokka stood in between him and Katara. Her body lay on the floor, lifeless, but he could do nothing as he watched her figure be thrown into a black ocean. She drifted aimlessly through the tides, sinking toward the ocean bottom. He had reached out, but was only pushed farther away from her. _No..._

_"Without the Avatar State, balance will never be restored."_

_"I... I can't..."_

He was forced to watch his friend drown in the inky sea. The sea that she had loved so much claiming her as its own.

_"You must embrace it... before we do it for you. Not that you have a choice..."_

He desperately tried to understand the messages that these menacing images were conveying, but stopped. There was... something else... another voice that seemed to echo from the dark depths of his mind. It was so soothing... if only he could make it out...

The dark wispy view reappeared before him. The voice gently called to him again...

-----

"Aang."

She looked down intently, enraptured with the face that twitched and frowned through a myriad of emotions before focusing its eyes on the girl above. Cloudy gray met shining blue in a shared, awed gaze. She gaped at the scene before her.

_He opened his eyes... he's okay..._

Two weeks of sheer stress had ignited the worry and extinguished the hope in her heart. A bubble of joy rose up from within her.

"K...Katara?" a soft voice finally managed to choke out.

She grinned, elated. "You're awake!" Katara stared, trying to adapt to the change in him -- especially getting used to the fact that now, when she watched him, there were bright, _alive _eyes that were looking right back. She yearned to take him in her arms in her ecstasy, but refrained from doing so as she saw his slight cough. "Let me get you some water." Aang nodded through the powerful sleep that still tried to take him back.

Hastily making her way to the other side of the room, she left the Avatar to muse at his environment and contemplate his situation. The redness of the room was foreboding... he had barely managed to see Katara's face yet as he sorted through his muddled view. When he finally succeeded, he sat up tentatively, the black and red poster above being the first thing to rivet his gaze.

A small yelp from behind caused Katara to turn around in time to catch Aang recoiling from the sign on the wall. Grabbing her water pouch, she hastened to walk over and lay a comforting hand on his shoulder. He placed a hand on his lower forehead to quell the lightheadedness from his quick reaction and Katara steadied him with her arms.

"Don't worry, Aang. We're safe... we have people on our side trying to help us." Katara paused to watch his blank face. "Aang... are you alright?"

"Yeah. I'm fine," he croaked, wincing at the sound of his hoarse words. He watched as she sat by his side and stared at him.

She could feel energy returning to her with the knowledge that her hope had finally awakened... and that it would live. She couldn't believe that after all this time, he had actually woken up... she'd begun to wonder whether he ever would. Words could never fully capture her happiness, her relief. She hesitated, then reached down to pull him into a warm embrace. "You have no idea how worried I was..."

_Why was she so worried? What _had_ happened?_

But for now, he just cared about feeling the tender arms of Katara around him as a temporary assurance that things would turn out fine... if only for the moment.

Katara clung to him and felt his weight against her increase as fatigue reclaimed him. Through the smoky scent and unexpected turn of events, all that truly mattered was Aang. She could say in her mind, without a doubt, that today was in fact a good day.

* * *

**A/N: **Originally, the chapter wasn't supposed to end like this... after I saw the Book 3 trailer (drool September 21 CANNOT come quickly enough), I made it darker, but I had to put a lighter part in there first. I'd put the rest, but it was getting waay tooo loooong... The speed of the story is also gonna pick up a bit after -- or possibly _in_ the next chapter. But there's gonna be a lot of background in the first few chapters before the real plot sets in.

Enough rambling.

Review please!


	4. Departure

Hallelujah! I'm sorry it took so long to finally get this up... I actually started to have a life outside of the internet again lol. (aka: I lost track of time.) Much thanks to those that have taken the time to review! I feed on those just so you know... Even though I've done my best to avoid mistakes here, if you find any misspellings or grammar flukes, tell me please.

TTAvatarfan:) I'm glad you thought the ending was cute... unfortunately I'm not sure how many more of those there are gonna be... at least for the time being. Whatever I write comes out angsty. I'm cursed I tell ya!

Twilight Rose2: I'm afraid that we're not gonna find out who "they" are for a while... not too long though... thanks for the _enthusiastic_****review lol

Aangsfan: Thank you for the encouragement! At the time I really needed that... well, I still do.

I'm sorry I didn't personally thank my reviewers in last time I updated, so I've done it now. I know that these three chapters have been going pretty slowly, and I'm working on that.

* * *

Night's thick velvet had befallen the thick forest and its surroundings. Various lanterns had been lit in the center of the town, their light never quite reaching the outskirts where four fugitives had hidden.

Katara reached into a lower cabinet to find two small rocks which she used to light the few candles throughout the room. She then set them down, picking up her waterskin to walk over to Aang. To her surprise, though, he was not asleep. Instead, his eyes roamed over the room before settling on her, dark and contemplating.

"She took it didn't she... Ba Sing Se..." Katara looked down and nodded. "That's why we're here..."

"Yes," she breathed. He sighed, feeling the effects of failure more than earlier. His head was clearer and he was more acutely aware of his surroundings, now noticing the sharp pain that shot up his spine from time to time. Glancing in surprise at the bandages around his torso, Aang tried to lift himself up on his elbows but failed miserably. He'd been able to do this before... he groaned.

"Katara, why... what happened to me?"

She halted instantly, in the middle of beginning to draw her healing water out of the pouch. _How could he not remember that? _She slid the water back inside and quickly corked the opening. "I'll tell you later," she managed to force out, inwardly wincing. Aang appeared to accept this response as his thoughts drifted back to the present.

"All that matters is that we're all here, together," she continued, mentally questioning the whereabouts of her brother and Toph. Aang watched her sit next to him on his bed and again, wrap her arms around him. He couldn't remember the time Katara had done this so much... what had happened must have been intense... courtesy of his obvious failure.

Katara savored the close hug with her friend, then pulled away so that she could finally see those eyes that had held the vivacity and love of life that had endeared him to her. Her heart had leapt -- and stopped mid-beat. Why wasn't he smiling... and why wouldn't he hold her as he had done so often before? The worry and seriousness of his eyes abruptly pierced into her and forced her to admit that there was something about him that had turned definitely off-key.

"This is all my fault," he confessed, frustrated. Katara, surprised, shook her head.

"No, please don't say that, Aang. Everything will work out fine..." Katara felt the proverbial scabs on her heart peel away with each evidence of the fact that things were not as reassuring as she'd expected them to be. "What's wrong?"

"I just--" he broke off, cutting the rest of his sentence and biting his lip, averting his eyes to rest them on the red poster to which he had arisen. "How did everything come to this?"

"I don't know, Aang..." She went on more forcefully, "But we'll make it. I promise." Katara pulled him close to her. Both shut their eyes at the close contact but Katara felt her heart falling just a little bit more... she still didn't feel his arms around her.

-----

Sokka stumbled onto the porch steps, struggling to see where his feet were going as he craned his neck over the pile of robes and other garments he was carrying. He kicked open the door, grateful for the small amount of light emanating from the cabin as he strode inside and yelled to his sister.

"Hey Katara, what--" Immediately, he stopped short at the scene before him. The picture of Katara on Aang's bed struck him, as she heartily embraced the boy whom Sokka knew of to be unconscious. His eyes were closed, arms hanging limply by his side and Sokka was wondering how such an emotional action had erupted from a girl who'd been anything but demonstrative of her feelings since... the incident of weeks ago. He had no reason to believe that Aang was awake and he wondered whether Katara had finally been pushed past her limits to the point of showing her concern to guys that weren't even conscious...

"Uh, Katara?" he said softly. "I thought Gran Gran taught you better than to take advantage of comatose boys." Expecting a negative reaction if she were in fact doing this because she was upset, Sokka automatically flinched. She didn't respond, however, she only held the boy in her arms tighter when Aang frowned, tensed, and then completely relaxed, hugging her back tightly.

_So he was awake? _Sokka couldn't quite adjust to that revelation as he'd been asleep that very morning... after all those weeks, he'd been starting to wonder if he ever would wake up...

"Aang?"

The younger boy sighed and slowly pulled away from Katara, staring into her eyes as he did so. Their gaze was unbroken as she gently lay him back onto the bed. "Hey, Sokka," he whispered, finally managing to turn his eyes from the girl to her brother.

Sokka's pure relief hesitated at the lack of enthusiasm from the formerly vibrant boy. The pile of garments in his arms were dumped into a bag by the door. He'd started to move forward to smilingly clap a hand on the boy's shoulder but decided to simply answer, unsure as to the spell that he seemed to have just broken, "Welcome back."

_Good to be back._ The phrase suddenly echoed in Aang's head, bringing back memories of the Fire Nation prince... strangely, the more recent they became, the more his head hurt trying to remember. Why was the scarred boy's face conjuring up images of a green-lit area with... crystals? Aang rubbed his forehead trying to offset the pain and swallowing to mellow the sickness in his chest. Katara began to move away from him.

"Let me get some water to heal your back."

"My back?" He snapped out of his thoughts. He knew it hurt, he had already become aware of the bandages across his body... but why...? "What happened to it anyway?" Aang knew he had asked earlier and had supposed that she just didn't feel like saying anything at the time. She turned around but her reluctance of speech was evident. Sokka raised an eyebrow at the tension between the two and wondered why she hadn't yet told the boy of the disaster at Ba Sing Se.

No one noticed the soft creak of the door from the front of the room.

"Twinkletoes?"

Toph. Aang's mouth twitched into a wry smile... _if only he felt so twinkly_. The earthbender approached the three others with a light smirk before her smile turned more genuine. _Two long weeks and finally... _She almost couldn't believe it

"Glad you're back, buddy." She almost went ahead and hugged him in assuaged anxiety but stopped when she realized he didn't feel at ease at all, and probably wouldn't appreciate it. Toph slightly cocked her head in confusion at his obvious change in demeanor then mentally shrugged. Sappiness wasn't really her thing anyway.

"So, what took you so long?" Toph went on, regaining her usual sarcasm. "We were about to ditch Katara with how paranoid you were making her." Aang watched Katara glare at Toph, even though a light blush was evident on her face. How worried _was _she? He never really knew how much she truly cared...

The sudden silence in the room caused the three to turn their attention to the boy gazing thoughtfully at the ceiling. Katara touched his shoulder. "Aang?" He simply gave Katara a blank stare. Words seemed to echo in a faraway seclusion of his mind... he just couldn't remember for the life of him from where...

_"Let her go, Aang."_

And in a split second, he saw her figure floating away from him... floating away as the Avatar Spirit he had chosen loomed before him to take him... forcing all of his attachments from him...

_"Aang."_

But why? What had caused this to occur -- if it wasn't a trick of his tired mind.

_"Aang?"_

The last thing he could recall was seeing a mass of people about him, how everything had gone wrong and he felt himself rise into the air...

"Aang!" The panicky call shattered his musings and he narrowed his eyes confusedly at Katara.

"What happened to me?" When she did not respond, he cast quizzical glances to the other two observers. He noticed they were also staring intently at the waterbender to whom words seem to come at a loss. He sighed, feeling the roots of irritation take hold of his nerves. Why wasn't she _answering _him?

"Please, tell me," he said firmly. He could tell she was trying to ignore his cold tone... he mentally kicked himself.

She'd tried to avoid dealing with this earlier... but it could not be put off -- judging by his solid stance on the issue, he wouldn't allow it to be. "She-- you..." Katara stammered, surprised at her discomfort. Somehow, she just couldn't hear her own speech through the scream in her head as she relived the battle in Old Ba Sing Se.

-----

It hit her as strange that she hadn't noticed this before: that neither she nor Sokka had ever been told what had happened within the underground catacombs of the Earth Kingdom's capital city. She figured Katara had simply forgotten to tell them, so she had let the matter drop... until now when it came up and the other girl was still having difficulty explaining it. After the first several times of trying to get the information out of her days ago, she had given up...

_"Katara, what happened?" A pause ensued as Toph waited for an answer from the girl who was slowly eating from an old metal bowl._

_"Nothing much." It didn't take much for her to know she was lying. She didn't even have to listen to her heartbeat... she could feel her trembling and hear the tiny sounds of metallic clattering as she told Toph to excuse her -- she had to go check on Aang._

Toph had expected for Katara to gladly get whatever had happened off of her chest, but that hadn't been the case.

_She never forgot,_ Toph thought. In fact, it appeared to be the complete opposite of that. Toph could tell that Aang was thoroughly perplexed -- most likely more so than she considering he probably wasn't even aware of his previously fatal situation. She shifted her weight, intently waiting for the whole story from Katara. _What was taking her so long? _She was a sentimental person, but what was so terrifying about saying, "You got a random blast in the back from one of the royal-pain-in-the-neck siblings," end of story? _You'd think she'd be more angry than anything and easily spout off bitter words about whoever had done this. _Sokka's mind was traveling along those exact same lines.

Most of Katara's face was covered in shadows as the flickering candlelight skimmed over some parts on her lowered head.

"I need to know," his weak voice insisted. _Why did her eyes look so haunted?_

She could see the confusion in his eyes and read the question that plagued his mind. _Because it's not every day that you see your best friend being electrocuted. Didn't he understand that? _she thought irrationally._ Nobody else seemed to..._

That's when she remembered that she hadn't told them -- no one else knew. Somehow, the boy's fate had been erased from his memory. After fighting so hard in such a large battle, she had forgotten -- especially after two weeks of traveling with them -- that she was the only one protecting him because neither her friend nor her brother were there to help. Only she had been the one to aid the Avatar, only she could have protected her friend. That moment was also when she realized how much that experience had actually _traumatized _her. How did it feel to be the only compassionate soul to watch him be shot as the battle reached its deciding climax?

His body shaking and convulsing in the air, as the raw power he possessed was killed in cold blood.

It took forever for even _she _to finally understand how much she had been affected by that experience, and she had witnessed it. Now, she knew where those late night shivers that crawled up her spine came from. The feeling of safety that would suddenly tear her away into the darkness of fear. The images constantly replayed, although she bid them into repression. It was haunting, it was scary... and she had no idea what to do with it... but he'd always seemed to have the answer for things anyway.

"Tell me about it, Katara." His earnest voice replaced the night of their loss with the face of a caring, more mature boy, who still seemed to gleam with hope, however dim, even after the world had stopped. She took a deep breath.

"Azula, she... she hit you with lightning." Aang stared at her. Katara bit back the sickening dread that she felt and pressed on. "She _electrocuted _you, Aang, right in front of me. I didn't protect you..." she continued bitterly.

"Woah." Sokka raised both of his eyebrows this time. _So it wasn't just some stray ball of fire..._

Katara watched Aang, waiting for him to speak. She anticipated a lighter response -- he always made her feel better right? The growing feeling of newfound worry expanded in her chest when his brow creased even more deeply.

"Why don't I remember this? Why didn't I see it coming?" Then, everything slowly dawned on him. "I was in the Avatar State wasn't I?" Sokka and Toph looked on wide-eyed as the memories rushed back to the airbender.

"Why didn't you tell us any of this?" Sokka demanded of his sister. The very temperature around them seemed to rise dramatically the more information that spilled out of Katara's mouth. Aang didn't have time to catch her deep wince as worry filled his mind when a warning of long ago resounded in his ears.

_"If you are killed in the Avatar State, the Avatar will cease to exist." _A gasp on Katara's part brought him back to reality. _Had he really said that aloud...?_

"I... I guess I thought I had died." He said nothing more, waiting for Katara to contradict him.

Not a single sound echoed within the entire room.

"You did," she choked out. Everyone was shocked into even more deafening silence. Toph's eyes widened... _She thought she had been dreaming when she couldn't find the boy's pulse that night._

"K...Katara, I'm alive now, I couldn't have been..."

"The Oasis water brought you back... I... I think it healed the spirit inside of you, and that's why the injury on your back never got better..." She vividly remembered that moment of seeing his scar still there, thinking that all hope was forever lost... and watching his stony face only reminded her that it almost was. _Nice one, Katara. Now he knows you'd lost him. Again._

_Why did he feel so upset -- or perhaps, more importantly, why did it barely bother him to feel this way? She was there to help him wasn't she? The only reason he'd been down there in the first place was to save her and look at what it had brought him!_

_No -- she's your best friend. Why do you feel such resentment?_

Truth be told, he had no idea.

"But, it's still damaged though, isn't it." Aang looked down, deciding it didn't matter because he'd failed in his task back then anyway.

_"If you leave now, you won't be able to get into the Avatar State at all!" _He'd tried to get it back... for her. Come to think of it, everything he'd done was _for her._

He caught a streak of silver hitting the floor and resulting in a tiny pool of water on the dry wood. He raised his eyes to see another drop fall from Katara's eye. Any thought or trace of bad feeling fled from him as soon as his mind registered the sadness in her, and it didn't even occur to him that for the first time, he was the one trying to comfort _her _instead of the other way around. _She must have been though a lot..._ He pulled her hands toward him and she grasped him around the waist. The lips next to his ear uttered two words.

"_I'm sorry."_

Aang felt instantly guilty of his unforgiving thoughts. "It's okay, Katara." After taking a shuddering breath, she straightened herself, visibly embarrassed by her display of tears.

"Let me get the water for you." She walked away before Aang could even nod.

Toph mumbled something to Sokka, out of the other two's earshots. "What's wrong with those two? They're taking this so hard... I never knew that seeing something could be so... horrifying. I could tell she was scared out of her mind..."

Sokka nodded, mirth taking a backseat to the pictures his own mind would rather never have seen at all. "Yeah... it's like a scar that you can't get rid of. You don't forget things like that. Toph--" he spun around to her and placed his hands on her shoulders "--vision isn't just a blessing. It's a curse too, like everything else." The unexpected force of his words and motions moved her and she nodded dumbly. She trailed after him as he exited the house.

--------------------

Shadows danced across the far wall, coalescing into graceful puppets against the hazy light. Smoky incense permeated the area, courtesy of the town's new ownership.

Aang had held in a sharp breath each time nimble fingers had peeled his wrappings off of his raw, sensitive skin. Katara had taken care to not hurt him any more than necessary as she removed the bandages, watching wordlessly as he reached back and gingerly felt the ominous black scar that did not hesitate in invoking unneeded memories. Again, their other two companions had left - Toph as their guard and Sokka apparently with her - while Katara drew water around her hands and pressed it against Aang's looming wound.

It was curious how so little time could completely alter one's comprehension of the world, brutally prying it from them and turning it upside-down. She was Katara, the healer; he was Aang, the one who always got back up when struck to the ground, the one who always became better when hurt. So many times as he sat in front of her, would Katara watch her shining water glow and draw it away from his back... and so many times he would hear her breathy sigh and his head would lower even further in defeat.

Because _every _time, the dark memory burned into his flesh stayed precisely the way it had been before.

Sometimes, healers couldn't heal; sometimes those that fell within the sea of trouble could never resurface... could never _be _healed. Katara realized that for the first time, she and her friend were living those scenarios.

He heard the small click as she topped her water pouch and backed away. _The word that had never needed to be mentioned because it was already implied by the onerous air and knowledge about them._

"Nothing," she said. _Nothing. _That single proclamation that described everything that was going on around him.

_What can we do to help others now? Nothing. What can be done to erase all the horrid memories that plagued him? Nothing. What was he feeling? Nothing. _For once she could do absolutely _nothing _about that... and clearly, nothing about anything else either.

Sad faces mourned the empty scene of two friends distanced because of inner failure and desolation. They wished all of this pain would cease for the two undeserving adolescents.

They wished it could.

The long minute when Katara was awkwardly waiting for a response from the uncommunicative boy broke when a chilled gust of air blew in from the newly-opened door, momentarily darkening the small flames within the room. Sokka burst in, stopping as he noticed he'd again stumbled upon the unearthly stillness between his sister and the Avatar. Katara quickly dropped her concerned train of thought at Sokka's hasty entrance.

"What's wrong?"

"Fire Nation," he answered gravely. "Lots." A buzz of energy was sparked in the very currents of the room as soon as the siblings recovered from the dire sense of urgency.

A flurry of excitement whizzed in front of Aang's eyes as Sokka grabbed three traveling sacks from the floor and two cloaks. He tossed one to Katara. She pulled it over her head as she threw rolled bandages and her water skin into a deep red bag at the foot of Aang's bed. She had been previously unaware of its existence but had not dwelled on the unimportant distraction.

"Aang, can you walk?"

Transfixed by the breathless rush, it took a few seconds for him to lower his feet from the bed and raise his body onto his shaky legs... and immediately crumple into a dead fall.

Katara's arms caught him surprisingly quickly and lifted his body before it had been halfway to the floor. By the time his arm was looped around her neck and they hobbled to the door, the room had been stripped bare and in pitch darkness -- the warm candles having been disposed of in a burlap bag in Sokka's possession. They'd definitely thought of everything. The swiftness of their departure came to a screeching halt, however, before Aang's brain had even completely wrapped around the laborious and painful walk that his body had to endure.

"Where's Appa?" As if it were second nature he posed the question, already knowing the answer by the lack of growls and groans from his friend. Another piece of his world had darkened already... this could not have good results.

"A lot safer than we are -- that's what," Sokka whispered harshly. "And a lot more alive too if we don't get out of here soon."

_Why? What had happened? Apprehension raged in Aang's head. Where was his friend and only link to a long lost past? _As much as adaptation and freedom was part of his nature, this did not sit well inside of his troubled heart. There was such a thing as too much change, especially in such a short time from Aang's point of view. Why was he always blissfully unaware when his world slowly came crashing down upon him?

Labored breaths drew his attention to the girl who was almost dragging him along in her hurry. Katara's exhausted voice, now full of worry, addressed Sokka.

"Wait! Where's Toph?"

A familiar grunt from ahead seemed to answer her, the cover of night effectively hid the earthbender from view.

Aang forced himself to disregard his own wheezing while he struggled to keep up with the fast paced escape. He grimaced at the constant irritation Katara's robe was causing on his bare back. None of them dared to stop until the forest completely swallowed them into its wilderness. They kept silent for fear of those from whom they were on the run...

Meanwhile, a troop of foot soldiers burst into the recently vacated home with nothing but the comforting after scent of votives to carry any trace of the four runaways.

* * *

_**A/N: **Thanks for reading! Some parts in this chapter were meant to be in the last one but it made things a bit too awkward... otherwise, this would have been much more eventful. I needed to get some character development out of the way. All crit is welcome._


	5. Gameplan

Tell me what needs improvement -- I'm half asleep (even though it's only 5 pm) and even if it's just some spelling or grammatical quirk, I'd like to know. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed!

Longest chapter yet... whaddya know...

* * *

"I told you so."

If there were even words to describe any emotional or verbal aspect of his sister, these would be right on target. They formed her speech, were written all over her smug expressions, and simply oozed out of her casual yet confident stride in staggering amounts. He couldn't say there were never times when he wanted her to be right - more so because of whatever the situation would be than actually allowing her to gain glory - but as much as her evil demeanor screamed how wrong she was, it could not be denied how much her logic made sense. Or maybe it was just what he wanted to hear. If having her be wrong about things like this proved so disappointing, how could her flawless correct answers be the harbinger of another bad emotion? It was a lose-lose situation, but as he feasted his amber eyes on a delicious sight that he'd been deprived of for years, he really couldn't bring himself to truly care. His dream had been realized to its completion, so joy filled him for the first time in so long. That's what he was supposed to feel. That's what he made himself believe he did feel. He was finally home with the shared honor of capturing a city for his country, just like she had promised he would be. She'd lied before... but how could that matter anymore? She always seemed to be right for some uncanny reason.

"I told you so."

It'd have done him well to also remember all the other promises she had every intention of keeping.

--------------------

Azula tapped her fingers against the dull metal of the ship's walls. The loud groaning of grotesque machinery could be heard as the engined rattled below the common decks of the vessel. Only a dim torch hung on a makeshift stand on a wall, burning away the hours that she spent alone in the little room. There was no view; she didn't need one. All she wanted was a space to herself where no one else dared to venture. The belly of the ship was cold, desolate, and dangerous... but then again, so was she.

The quill in her hand stood erect and poised, ready to take down any small tidbit of information that happened to cross Azula's mind. After seeing the countless disasters and foiled plans that had arisen from incompetent generals and ministers, she had become tired of sitting back and letting her minions do the dirty work. She told herself she would personally see to it that everything worked seamlessly together, and of course, see to it she did.

She remembered the priceless look on her Zuzu's face when she had joyfully called out about the death of the Avatar. He was too busy dwelling in his self-questioning thoughts to give a single care about Azula's out of character certainty about an event that left many questions unanswered. She would have probably found it amusing had that not meant that he was most likely second-guessing her loyalty - which was actually nonexistent - to him... of course that also told her that he would never see what was coming next.

Nighttime had come so the sounds of seafaring life had decreased even further than the stony silence of fearful guards whenever Azula was nearby. The next morning, she would still find Zuko on the ship's upper deck as the boat pulled into port, she already knew that. She could practically hear the thoughts in his head, so strenuous and tense they were... his feelings about everything else were also as palpable as the very desk on which she wrote. Admittedly, there were some... more personal aspects of the group dynamics that she hadn't quite anticipated, but in the long run they would be unimportant; trivial. She had finally been able to tear him away from "his beloved traitor", as she tended to refer to her familial prisoner in Ba Sing Se.

She scanned the sheet in her left hand, skimming down to the final paragraph -- just above the large imprint of the royal family's seal and "Ozai" written in bold, dark characters. The topic of this section had been of relatively low importance and therefore at the bottom of the letter, she noticed. Perfect.

_...should be honored for the assassination of the Avatar... I trust that you are certain in his demise..._

Azula smirked. She dropped the paper, ready to add the final touches to another long letter which she drew from beneath the desk's top metal sheeting. She smilingly shifted her plume to her left hand, successfully finishing her night's work.

_I assure you that everything has gone as planned and that he will no longer hinder your plans, My Lord._

Azula continued to write.

_I will take care of all that needs to be done._

_Your faithful servant,_

_Zuko_

--------------------

The captain's hands burst into flames as he gave an exasperated yell.

"They're gone again!"

A meek voice from behind offered a suggestion. "M--maybe they weren't here at all, Sir. Remember the other... cabin..." he trailed off, unsure of his words.

"Hmph," the captain grunted, vigorously stroking the short growth of hair on his chin. "Either way, Kijo," he continued more calmly, "someone has some explaining to do about their _sources..._ The princess is not going to be pleased and _I _will not take the blame. Who did we get the information from?"

"Let me check..."

-----

The thin man was roughly shoved against the wall, his dilated pupils radiating pure fear as a soldier held him by his shirt collar.

"Now, exactly _what _did you see?" he demanded, face shrouded by the dimness in the alley way although the afternoon sun was still shining directly above the town.

"I-it was -- er... th-there were three people--"

"What kind of people?" the captain demanded, tightening his grip on the civilian. For a second, he didn't expect a response because of the man's violent shaking. Beneath his bright green cap and on his chin, his very hair was trembling, blurring the strands into hazy gray.

"Um... young! They were, uhh, young... c-carrying a, um, body on a... uh, uh, uh--" The large man's grip loosened and the panicking figure fell to the ground, a body swathed in various shades of green besieged by a platoon of red-armored warriors. Clearly, they weren't getting much out of him by threats, so he may as well try a different tactic. The answers he needed were too valuable for him to fool around anymore... even though it would have been immensely amusing to continue watching the somewhat aged man squirm beneath his stare. He rolled his eyes -- even his mousy little advisor didn't stutter that much.

"P-please, Sir... give me time! I'll tell you, I promise! Just don't hurt my--"

"Well, then get to it!" As much as Azula would kill him if he botched this simple task, his patience was rapidly dwindling and he started to think her wrath was worth it if he could just get away from this strangely irritating peasant. You would think a skilled vendor would have more eloquence than this...

Passersby walked past the entrance to the narrow road, peeking inside to view the violent scene and hastily running off once the presence of the Fire Nation army registered in their minds. Attention was the last thing the captain needed, but fortunately, the scared man had finally calmed, and he went over his thoughts slowly. "Well, they were wearing capes... but the one on the... ah! _Stretcher_! That's the word--"

"Yes, yes, get on with it."

"Well, he was wearing bandages. I do believe a couple were darker skinned... like... Water Tribe! Yes! And um... they might have been wearing... blue? They seemed familiar somehow..."

The captain raised his eyebrows. Now, they were getting somewhere.

"'Familiar' you say?" He leaned close to the seller and spoke lowly. "Were you in acquaintance with the Avatar and his friends?" He fought the urge to gag -- the older man's breath smelled like rotten vegetables... the vendor let out a laugh.

"Hah! How could I not? Those inconsiderate vandals destroyed--" The captain interrupted, having already jumped back onto his Komodo Rhino, and signaling his men to do the same.

"Come on, boys! They're still out there, let's go!" With the wave of his arm, he and his team stampeded to the entrance of the alley and made a right, oblivious to the little wooden stand at the corner. The old man waved his arms and screamed in a frantic high-pitched voice.

"No! Stop! My--"

A large crack resounded in the streets and he sank down to the dirt in agony, pulling at his hair.

"My cabbages!" he wailed morosely.

--------------------

Toph slowly knelt on the ground, placing her hand on the dank soil. She slowly rose and shook the excess dirt from her fingers.

"All clear."

"Finally," Sokka groaned, plunking himself onto a rolled sleeping bag, Katara being alone in the process of helping Aang down from the crest of the incline from which they came. As she approached her brother, she cleared her throat and lightly kicked him with her foot. He looked up and wordlessly hoisted himself off of the roll to untie it so that it would lay out -- such was the wordless communication that they had developed over the past few weeks. Katara let go of Aang and gently pushed him down to the ground but he resisted.

"Aang?"

"Katara, I don't want to take your sleeping roll. I'll be fine somewhere else." Katara would hear none of it.

"No. Your back still needs to heal."

_If it ever does, _he thought.

Katara continued, "You need this more than I do. You're tired, Aang admit it."

He couldn't deny the fact that it was becoming increasingly difficult to keep his eyes open and body balanced, so he agreed, albeit reluctantly. "Where will you sleep then?" Aang questioned, still unconvinced.

"Sokka's keeping watch. Before I take over for him, I'll be using his, don't worry." Katara smiled reassuringly, unable to fathom how he could be so concerned with her when he was the one who had gone through the near-death experience. She actually wished that she didn't have to be on guard duty so that she could be closer to Aang. She didn't want to risk asking her brother if he'd take over, though. Not only did he deserve his sleep but even though he'd recently been strangely sensitive, he'd probably laugh along with Toph at Katara's over protectiveness of the boy. If it weren't for the fact that she was well aware his safety was dearer to her than life itself, she would probably mock herself as well... she couldn't explain the increase in strength of the bond she felt toward him. She supposed that the old saying was true and that you only fully appreciated what you had once you had lost it... or, in her fortunate case, had_ almost _lost it.

"Um..." Aang murmured uncertainly as Katara's focus drifted off into space. She still had her hand on him to help him down but had already stopped moving a while before. He saw her eyes rest upon him, most likely not of their own accord, and he shifted oddly under her intense gaze. _So this is what Katara must feel like when I used to stare at her like that... _He quickly shook his head_. Just don't think about it..._

"Uh, Katara?" Now, Aang was tiring from his position on his partially bent legs. She shook herself out of her trance and quickly let him go so that he could lower himself to the ground.

"Sorry... Will you be okay?"

Aang nodded. "I'm fine." He lay down and tried to force his eyes open, but sleep had already claimed them. The last thing he could feel was the dull throb of his back and a light caress on his hair as he drifted off.

Katara stood straight and began to retreat to the nearby sleeping bag after making sure Aang would be close enough to her. As she neared it, she could tell she was falling asleep during her walk... she could already feel the blanket's warm pelts as she wrapped herself in delightful slumber...

"Katara?" Katara halted and shut her eyes in annoyance._ Leave it to my brother. _"We need to talk."

"No, we need to sleep."

Toph's voice came muffled from the earth tent she had previously erected. "I think I'm with Sugar Queen on this one. Tomorrow, Snoozles. Tomorrow..."

Sokka shook his head. "No, we're gonna be on the run tomorrow. We need a plan _now._"

Katara dragged her feet around and toward Sokka who had managed to get a meager fire flaring in front of him. She dropped to a crouch and lay down sideways, eyes at an exhausted droop as her hand supported her head. "I'm listening."

Toph rose a stout pillar from next to Katara and sat on it, elbows on her knees. The late hour was dulling their energy, but Sokka was right; this had to be done before they awoke the next morning. "Let's get this over with," she grumbled.

"All right. So, Aang needs a firebending teacher right?" They nodded. "And we need a plan to invade the Fire Nation but the Earth Kingdom is no longer safe." Katara raised her eyebrows impatiently.

"I think we all remember what happened the past few days, Sokka."

"Okay, okay. Azula isn't sure we're still alive, and we can use that to our advantage. They're not gonna be looking for us and we can get some disguises more easily."

"Woah, hold up, buddy. _No one _is gonna pretty me up just so that we can break into some nation. Can't we just go into some Earth Kingdom town like we did before and decide everything from there?"

"We can't," Katara interjected. "Ba Sing Se was our destination when we were doing that. And now..." she looked at the sleeping figure on the ground just out of the firelight's reach "...that's gone too..."

"We need to find the rest of the Earth Kingdom forces that aren't loyal to Azula, but before we do that, we need a plan of attack. If we're going to find a way to _defeat _the Fire Nation, we need to know exactly how they _work._"

Toph perked up. "So, basically it's like what we did with the drill. We can find its weak points on the inside and deliver the final blow from the outside..."

Sokka voiced his affirmation and continued, "But first, we need to get within the Fire Nation's borders."

"Riight, Snoozles... we pretty much already knew that. If this was all you called us here for..."

Sokka shook his head. "But we need to figure out how to do it."

"Yeah," Katara sighed. "We can't do this the way we are now. The moment we step foot in a town, the soldiers will be all over us..."

"My point exactly! That's just it -- this is exactly what they're looking for - a group of four: two water tribe kids, one from the earth kingdom, and one with obvious tattoos. One waterbender, one warrior, an earthbender, and an airbender. Katara and I wear glaringly bright blue clothes, Aang wears an orange outfit! Toph would be fine if it weren't for the fact she can find her way around although she's blind."

"Rub it in, Snoozles."

"But I'm serious! We can't get away from the Fire Nation enough to survive, much less beat them looking like this. We need a new plan, one that doesn't involve us looking like walking targets."

"You've got a point, Sokka," Katara agreed. "So, now what do we do?"

"We start to blend in."

Katara narrowed her eyes. "Blend in, as in wearing Earth Kingdom clothes?" she asked hopefully. He shook his head.

"No. If we really don't want to raise suspicion or get people asking questions, we can't do that. I mean, there are gonna be Fire Nation soldiers all over the place doubting the loyalty of Earth citizens because some might still resent them. The last thing we want is to attract hostile attention, so to put it one way, if we can't beat them we join 'em!"

Toph groaned. "I was actually starting to believe in what you said until that last part. I'm serious, if it weren't for the fact that I've been with you all the time, I'd think Long Feng_ did _brainwash you." She chuckled. "Unless he brainwashed me at the same time."

Everyone silenced and stared at her. She put up her hands defensively.

"It was a joke, ya know."

Katara's eyes had a faraway look as she fell into the events of weeks ago...

_"The Earth King has invited you to Lake Laogai."_

She remembered Aang telling her this as the group had flown away from that place.

_"That's what Long Feng would say if someone he brainwashed started to remember or have second thoughts... That's how he got Jet to turn on me..."_

_Katara looked down before responding. "Oh." Aang winced knowing he was striking a raw nerve. He sat down in front of her._

_"I'm so sorry Katara," he apologized softly. _

_She sighed. "No." She looked up at him and smiled slightly into his concerned gry eyes. "It's not your fault, don't worry about it." His lips hesitantly twitched upward before pulling away and retreating to Appa's reigns, allowing Sokka to talk to his sister. At the time, she had truly been stunned at Sokka's sincerity... not once had he berated her for falling for the guy in the first place..._

Toph's mind wanderings had led to the same incident as well. He had been a friend of both Katara and Aang -- Toph had found it strange considering Katara apparently harbored feelings for him while Aang obviously had some for her. She had to admire how truthful the airbender had sounded when he said he was sorry it had come to that; she knew it must have been hard to push himself aside, for someone as emotional as he was. He was always so comforting, it hadn't seemed strange to her to hear him give his condolences, when it had been so difficult for him. Still, it wasn't like Toph was going to make Katara aware of that, especially not at the time. As much as consoling wasn't one of her favorite things to do, she knew where to draw the line. Most of the time.

Toph had just become aware of Sokka's moving body, as he headed toward the back of the encampment. Katara followed him with his eyes as he returned with a large but oddly lightweight bag. He dumped its contents in front of the two girls and sat back down, amused by the growing look of dread on Katara's face.

_Why now? _She thought. _Hadn't things already changed too much already? _She swallowed her discomfort, however, and reached for a strip of fabric that appeared to be Toph's size. She tossed it to her before holding up a red top that looked suspiciously like it would stop well above her hips.

"You're kidding me, right?"

Toph lowered her makeshift seat and hopelessly felt around the loop of cloth with her fingers. "Please tell me that I'm just imagining the lack of straps on this thing."

"Uh..."

"Sokka," Katara thrust out the hand holding her shirt for emphasis, "we're just there to hide out until the Earth and Water troops are ready, but don't you think you could've gotten something my size?"

"Uh, that is your size. That's just Fire Nation--"

"Well I never saw... saw... _anyone _wearing something like this." For some reason, the only Fire Nation girl she could think of to prove her point at the moment was none other than the country's princess

She kept her mouth shut.

"Ugh, forget it. Um... what about Aang?"

At this, Sokka let out a sigh and picked up a long-sleeved undershirt with multiple layers of clothing along with it. Partial gloves complete the set along with a small band of red fabric trimmed in gold. "This." Katara's heart sank as she eyed the outfit, obviously meant to hide the airbender's bright arrows.

"He has to wear _that _load of garbage?" Toph asked incredulously. "It _feels _heavy, never mind how it's gonna be like once he's wearing it in this stupid humidity." She flopped back onto the dirt, aggravated by their state of clothing and lack of sleep. Sokka grabbed the last of the pile on the ground and placed it next to his sleeping bag.

"We can change into these tomorrow. Let's just try and get some sleep."

"Finally." Toph muttered. She made to sit up before freezing and looking toward Aang. "He's calling for you Sugar Queen." Katara jumped up and ran toward him in record time. She leaned toward him in order to hear his soft words, then nodded and pulled out the stopper of her waterskin.

"When did you have time to get this?" The waterbender asked while giving Aang a long sip of her bending water.

"Me and Toph had a long talk with the village leader. He got a lot of supplies recently and took a few aside for us... well, you three. I'd already had mine, remember?"

_So that's why they were out all day._

"Oh, right," she responded, recalling the days at her father's encampment. Capping her waterskin and gently replacing Aang's head on her sleeping bag, she stood and yawned. Sokka watched with a frown as she slung her pouch around her again. Something strange was nagging at the back of his mind...

"How did you heal Aang?" He knew it probably wasn't important but he felt the urge to ask anyway.

Katara jerked her head toward him in suspicious brusqueness. "The Spirit Oasis water that night in Ba Sing Se," she said coolly. "Why?"

"But, I mean after..."

"There was no after."

"But you just told Aang on our way in that you used water to try and heal him practically every night! I saw you most of the time anyway."

Katara blinked. "Oh... that." She vaguely smiled as if in realization. "I had some that I saved up from my waterskin."

"Right, gotcha..." He turned back to his sleeping bag to unroll it.

"Liar," Toph's voice spat out from behind him. He spun toward her to defend himself before noticing that her statement was rather directed at Katara. "You didn't have it. That's why you got a new one when we went to see your dad."

"Well, then I got it from some stream that we found -- I don't remember, it was a long time ago."

"Yes, you do. There were no rivers where we landed -- we were dying of thirst for days!" Toph was dumbfounded at the fact that Katara was lying about something so trivial, but it irritated the earthbender for some reason. If she just went out and told them what happened, or even admitted to lying to Aang about healing him daily, they would leave her alone. But why bother not tell the truth about that?

"So you had extra water on you."

"Yes."

_Lying._

"Did you really heal Aang every night?"

"Of course."

_Telling the truth..._

Katara eyed Toph angrily. Toph wasn't sure if it was because she had doubted Katara's duty to Aang or if she really was pushing this conversation past the waterbender's comfort zone.

Katara squirmed under two intense gazes. Why were they pursuing this? What could have possibly made Sokka ask her something like that? Katara was well aware of Toph's ability to detect false words so she didn't bother trying to convince her... it was just her brother...

"Katara, where'd you get it?" he asked uncharacteristically gravely. He almost thought that she had found some and never told them, instead saving it for Aang... so why did her chapped lips and recurring fatigue and nausea from the past week seem to be connected with it...

She looked down, wincing. "It's no big deal."

"What?" he pressed.

-----

_Water. She needed water._

_-----_

She remembered the night that Aang's fever had spiked as if it had just happened the day before.

-----

_There was nothing else to use... Katara grit her teeth. It had to be done. Here goes nothing..._

_She, once more, held her hands before her and spun one of them in a circle, fingers pointing toward her chest. She brought her fingers together and thrust her arms out..._

-----

The girl in the back mused aloud. "There was no water around. The trees were dead so there wasn't any in them." _What else needs water to live? _"The only other source of water was..."

Sokka finished, eyebrows raised in shock, "You."

-----

_Finding a ready stream of water in her hands._

_-----_

Katara lowered her head in defeat. "You weren't supposed to know. Everything's fine now."

"Katara!" he yelled. "You could have _died _doing that!"

"Sokka, Aang would've if I hadn't helped him! And anyway, it's not like I've been doing it all this time." She crossed her arms, but then the spark of fury left her eyes. "I'm sorry. I didn't think you'd take it so hard." _I didn't think you'd care._

Toph's eyes had widened when she realized the truth about Aang's 'healing sessions'. She hadn't thought that Katara's ever-so-slight decrease in weight had been because of that. _What had she been thinking? _"You thought we'd try and stop you, didn't you? That's why you never told us."

"If you'd waited a couple days we'd have found water -- and you wouldn't have fainted by the time we got to Dad's ship!" Sokka seemed repulsed by the idea that his sister had done this to herself. "You literally sucked the life out of yourself just to--"

"Just to do what Sokka?" _Why didn't he understand? _She was becoming almost frantic in trying to explain that she had no other choice, but her dire need of sleep was now creeping into her voice. She continued tiredly, appearing drained of strength from her previous worry and anger. "Just to do what? _Just _to _save Aang_?"

Sokka shook his head, still perplexed at her surprising actions. _All of this, just for that kid... _he couldn't comprehend her lack of judgment, especially when the rest of them needed her so badly... she wouldn't have done anything like that only a couple of months before. He knew well that once you lost one person in your family... it was all too easy for it to happen again. He sighed deeply. "I... I just don't want to lose my sister." He hadn't even noticed that those words had been voiced.

Toph awkwardly cleared her throat. "We should get some sleep."

Sokka nodded and returned to the task of unrolling his sleeping bag for his sister. He stepped away and began to walk up the slope away from the clearing, pausing momentarily to glance at Katara. She had already lay herself in the fetal position facing away from him and Toph. Within seconds, though, she had already stood up and dragged the roll past the campfire, resting it a few feet behind Aang. Sokka continued up the hill.

Toph didn't bother to make Katara aware of the frantic heartbeat of one very awake airbender.

* * *


	6. Enemies Closer

I didn't really want to post this until later to make sure that there's not too much of a time lapse between now and the next update, but my dad got the Volume 3 DVD (:D) and I was just too excited not too..

This chapter is certainly not worth the wait that's preceded it, but I hope it's okay anyway.

* * *

_"Ah... finally. Rest..." Toph had mumbled as she settled into the dirt. Hours later, though for her it felt like only minutes, one person in camp had taken it upon himself to prove those words false._

_A loud snort was heard from a couple of feet away as dawn's sun reached its fingers through the bare, blackened branches of the ravaged woods around them. Toph jumped, senses keen and sharp after nights of having to be on one's guard -- she couldn't believe the vibrations Snoozles was sending off just by snoring. The uninterrupted silence, however, wasn't broken again, so she grumbled and fell back into the welcoming arms of sleep._

_A faraway voice echoed within the recesses of her dream._

_"Toph..."_

_She frowned and swatted off the annoying weight that seemed to constantly attach itself to her shoulder._

_"Toph..."_

_--_

_"Toph!"_

_Katara frustratedly shook her, muttering to herself about the utter stubbornness that the girl possessed even in her sleep. A word seemed to make its way out of Toph's mouth, and her muscles tensed, as if she were about to get up... Katara hoped for the best._

_"Mmm... So... ahmm..." The earthbender turned onto her side. Katara rolled her eyes, not bothering to muse over the girl's curious speech. Finally, she stood up abruptly only to turn and squat down to her brother's unmoving body. She brushed over his shoulder and nearly jumped out of her skin when he opened his eyes immediately in response to her touch._

_"Sokka..." She took a few moments to recover from his unexpectedly quick awakening. "It's time to get up. Go get Toph."_

_Under any other circumstance, he would have questioned the traces of bags under Katara's eyes, but he watched her move away from him and make her way toward a furiously sweating Aang and decided to give her a break..._

_Wait... furiously sweating Aang? As soon as his mind caught up with his vision he scrambled to his feet and rushed after Katara._

_"Woah, what happened to him?"_

_Katara sighed wearily. "Fever," she said. "It just started last night."_

_"Do you need me to get you anything?"_

_"There's no water... no nothing. I... I don't think there's anything else to do." The little remaining vegetation was suffering from a drought, he noticed. The waterbender had already figured that out that past night._

_Sokka laid a hand on his sister's shoulder and forced her to look at him. "He's going to be okay."_

_Katara nodded. She felt his grip loosen and his fingers slide off of her as he went to rouse the dreaming earthbender. Katara dropped her gaze to Aang's shivering form and gently squeezed his hand. His pale skin contrasted starkly with the brown-gray dirt that had been slightly humidified by droplets of moisture trickling off of his body._

_Going to be okay..._

_She absently fingered the empty vial she had kept around her neck before bending down and draping Aang's arm around her shoulders. She rose and walked unsteadily toward Appa and laid the boy onto him. Sokka, successful in his previous task, set out to help his sister._

_Toph stood at a distance from the three, curiously quiet and introspective. Ever since they had first landed after their midnight escape from Ba Sing Se, she had noticed a strange difference in Katara's weight and step. Sokka had grown more attentive and serious, and of course Aang... wasn't waking up._

_It was infuriating how close they had been to a pure victory in the Earth Kingdom... it was humiliating to see that they had been so unmindful to the corruption directly under their noses. Yet, amidst all of their failures and shortcomings, the worst disappointments of all were the changes within themselves. Not long ago, their days were bright and hopeful; what with the - admittedly annoying - carefree airbender, the waterbender who watched him with joy and laughter, and the warrior who would boredly turn to none other than herself to crack a joke -- for a sound punch in the arm in return._

_How bleak they were now, roaming from place to place with no intention but to survive for just one additional day. Of course Sokka would never run out of punchlines, maybe Aang would even wake up again... but nothing would ever be the same, she could tell. The very air around them had thickened and trailed the group wherever they happened to wander. No one ever bothered so speak much anymore for they had something else to listen to: the mocking whispers of guilt emanating from the ravens of their minds. No footsteps would sound; no breathing being could be felt within miles of where they stood._

_But it didn't take sight to be able to tell that they were most certainly not alone._

--

Katara's eyes opened to a silent, dark world, surrounded by the looming treetops of the forest. Frowning at her sudden awakening, she turned onto her side in an effort to avoid the bright waxing moon that shone, unobstructed, into her pupils. It was almost as if it could speak to her some nights, sending mysterious messages she simply couldn't -- or wouldn't decipher.

_Not safe, Katara... not safe..._

The murmur that had seemed to blow through her ears caused her to instinctively sit up and spin her head to where she had last set the young airbender to sleep just hours before...

In that very spot, he still lay, nearly as unmoving as the eerie woods that enveloped their clearing. Katara's brow furrowed further and she cast an annoyed glare at the moon._ Looks like I won't be sleeping much more tonight._

The girl carefully stepped away from the campsite, after being fully assured of her friends' safety. Sokka sat at the top of a nearby hill, remaining wide-awake and vigilant despite his recent lack of rest. She knew she should probably take over his post as she was unable to sleep in any case... but instead, she turned in the opposite direction and began a slow trek through the underbrush. The threat of discovery by an enemy and the danger of embarking on a spur-of-the-moment journey with no one by her side were all too real, yet the worries grew weaker with each new step. They were brief and soon replaced by a desire to simply explore and push through the rough limbs and plants... to find herself at the bank of a crystal-clear tributary flanked by the dense cover of deciduous trees. The river was dark, without sparkle and instead accented with black flashes; the moon was nowhere to be seen.

Katara stooped to cup a bit of the glittering liquid and brought it to her lips. The water was _salty._

Hastily spitting the water back out, she rose, only to peel down to her underclothes and lower herself into the gently-moving water. She floated on the water's surface, relaxing on her back and closing her eyes in peace. The tranquility of flowing water and the crisp feeling of the coldness stroking her skin was enough to soothe her tense figure and mind. There was no light to trouble her eyes, nothing to worry about. She simply fell back into the strangely lulling dream from which the moon had taken her just several minutes ago.

--

Darkness. Any rays of light that could have possibly been around him were absorbed into unseen objects, never to hit his startled eyes. He could feel himself floating; held by familiar hands as those soft voices again murmured in his ear. He stiffened. He'd been here before... this time though, the voices were far from comforting. The sense of drifting in the wind was soon replaced by a solidness beneath his feet and he looked down, finding a narrow white path that rested on the oblivion. How much it resembled the scene of when he was ready to give everything up... walking along as he connected with the Avatar spirit before him. The difference was, the spirit of the Earth was nowhere to be found... that and the pure blackness, unobstructed by light nor person, that stirred a strange sense of fear within him. Everything surrounding him was silent and unmoving, frighteningly so, and the absence of color seemed to wrap itself around him, slowly closing itself onto the boy.

The path on which he stood stretched for only a few steps before splitting off into two different ones. Both were identical. Both twisted and turned in dizzying fashions before finding each other once again. The convergence of the two was not far off, and there stood three grinning figures: his friends. Katara, Toph, and Sokka all waited, faces shining with happiness; fulfillment. Beginning to smile at their presence, he advanced along the small road, but stopped short when reaching its separation. A faint haze could be felt against his cheek, and soon along his entire body. The curtains of the invisible abyss around him seemed to press against him, forcing him to take yet another step, urging him to choose. The two paths were equally tempting... seemingly equal in every respect...

He took the left one... and everything went black.

Screams of battle seemed to echo from all around, but evidence of the occurring fight was difficult to find. Only a few people stood near him, seemingly calm and unaware of the loud cries. He tried so hard to focus on his friends amidst the crowd but he failed, a strange fog overcoming his senses. He desperately attempted to move, but couldn't. A faint voice murmured in his ear, urging him to look up into the large sapphire eyes of Katara. Her lips moved, yet no sound seemed to escape them as she softly smiled and pushed Aang back until he lay flat on the ground. She repeated her silent words just as his world dimmed and faded away...

And then there was water. All he could distinguish was the rough, violent liquid all around him, engulfing him into its blackened depths. An airy laugh carried over the deafening waves. He looked up at a strange platform drifting on the surface of the ocean to see Katara standing on it eyes closed and a peaceful smile gracing her face. A strange figure cloaked in black waited behind her, hand on Katara's shoulder, gently guiding her toward the edge. The water churned below and thunder rumbled above in the ominous gray skies; Katara was still smiling.

"Katara, no!"

She paused for a moment, her expression flickering between neutrality and confusion before the mysterious being behind her pushed her yet that little bit more.

"Katara!" Aang tried his hardest to push against the waves and stay afloat but his limbs seemed to be plagued with surreal lethargy which pulled him down like a dead weight. Katara now teetered on the side of the platform.

He screamed louder.

She soundlessly plunged into the unmerciful waves.

"_Katara_!"

--

The sound of splashing was the first thing that registered within Katara's ears -- right before realizing there was actually someone _gripping onto her arm_. Bursting up to stand in the shallow stream, she formed a water whip with her free hand, ready to fling it into the face of--

"Aang?" Thoroughly bewildered, she abruptly dropped her bending water and looked at him more closely. He was _sleepwalking_. "Aang." She gently shook his shoulder. "Aang!"

Her second yell caused him to jump and his red-rimmed eyes burst open. In even more pronounced surprise, she noticed the trails of tears that stained his pale cheeks. "Aang," she asked worriedly, "what's wrong?"

His eyes had the appearance of a spooked animal caught in a sudden flood of light. "K-Katara..." He stared at her frozen and at a complete loss for words. All he could remember was that horrid vision of the stormy ocean... he shivered involuntarily. Beginning to recover, he quickly pulled his hand back from her wrist and began to apologize. "I'm sorry... I, uh, had a bad dream." He couldn't bring himself to recount it to her. "Was I talking in my sleep or something?" He winced, a sharp pain spanning from his back wound piercing through his chest.

Katara, eyes still wide with shock and anxiety, looked the soaking wet Aang completely over before responding. "Um... something like that."

And that's when he finally felt the coldness of the waist-deep water he was standing in. _How in the world..._

Katara swallowed nervously and decided to go for her next query. "Why were you screaming for me, Aang?"

The Avatar's cheeks flushed a deep red in embarrassment. He backed away a step and awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, searching for a response. "I... I..." His sentence trailed off as he began to fully take in his surroundings. The quiet scene of the rocky creek around him brusquely contrasted with his dream of a roiling ocean, and yet it stirred the same unease within him. He cast an unsettled glance at the moonless sky and retook Katara's wrist. "I really don't think we should be here," he commented, beginning to walk out of the water. A resistance from Katara stopped him and he turned around, confused. Katara hadn't moved an inch and was staring Aang down with a faraway look, as if in a trance.

The uneasiness in Aang's stomach doubled.

"Katara?"

"Hmm?" Her gaze refocused onto him and she shook her head as if to clear her thoughts. "Oh... I'm coming." She trailed after him onto the shore.

--

Sokka tiredly yawned and stretched his arms above him. The night was proving to be long and drawn out -- but above all, unbearably mundane, as was usual when taking watch. The sky was a black velvet, sprinkled with vivid, twinkling stars and a thick sliver of white moon. It seemed to be emanating purity and life, the pristine color capturing his gaze just as its human form had only months before.

But it felt like a lifetime ago. He sighed, tearing his eyes away.

The landscape was calm and silent from Sokka's vantage point on a hilltop. The few farmlands remaining amidst sporadic factories were small and deserted before they ended at the edge of the island. Hours before, he thought he'd spotted a small blink of orange light at the base of his hill, but nothing had come of it and he blamed it on the dancing spots of color resulting from staring at the moon for too long a time. In contrast to the scene which he faced, the forest he now sat in was dense and dark, though obviously also deserted. Although the warrior still felt uncomfortable with the sentiment the group's previous conversation had left him with, he couldn't help but smile at their earlier trek through the woods...

_Aang leaned heavily on Katara's arm for support. The viscous night air made his scalp feel itchy and hot, but he didn't bother touching it... until he realized his head felt much more heated than it should. He reached up a hand to feel the tips of something warm and fuzzed. He instantly retracted his limb and let out a yelp, causing Katara to whip her gaze around to him._

_"Aang! What happened? Are you feeling all right?" Her words tumbled out in a succession worriedly enough for Toph to stop and turn around in concern. Aang stared, wide-eyed at the girl peering intently at him and stammered out a sentence._

_"Katara..." he whispered, "what... what in the world is on my head?" Katara froze, lips slightly agape as she watched the look of stupefied horror etch into his face... before a light bubble rose from her chest and she could not help but release a long, full, much-overdue laugh. Toph stood dumbfounded at the mirthful cry and Sokka even halted his clipped gait to watch the scene unfold. Katara felt slightly guilty for her reaction to Aang's question, but the one bit of humor was immensely welcome to her tense heart. She passed a hand over his head as Aang's confusion deepened. She truly wondered how he hadn't noticed before..._

_"Um, Aang, that's your hair," she stated, cheeks still flushed at her outbreak of laughter. The ensuing silence, however, caused Katara's slight amusement to subside and Aang just continued to gawk at her._

"And then," Sokka muttered under his breath, "everything went downhill from there..."

_"What?" he managed to choke out. "How long was I..."_

_"Two weeks." Sokka stepped forward to say his piece, pondering why Katara hadn't told him this before. She'd spent all of that time alone with him and she hadn't said anything? Had he not even asked?_

_"Two weeks?!"_

_Sokka rolled his eyes at the outburst oddly reminiscent of Katara's reaction to her bout of long sleep. Toph made it a point to quiet him._

_"Twinkletoes, you're gonna get every single Fire Nation goon all over us." Aang sighed deeply, trying to clear his mind of the sudden shock and allowing Katara to gently grasp his arm and guide him further along their track._

_"I failed didn't I."_

_It was hardly a question but Katara didn't hesitate in her response. She instinctively - almost painfully - tightened her grip on him and paused in her walk to say, "Of course not, Aang. Don't worry -- we'll make it--"_

_"No," he interrupted, eyebrows furrowing in anguish and pain. "I let everyone down in Ba Sing Se... I deserted everyone. Again."_

_Sokka watched solemnly as she kneeled before Aang, wordlessly pleading the poor boy to not put himself down... to not let _her_ down. He was conflicted, all of them knew that, it just worried Sokka how much faith Katara had in him -- how much unwavering devotion she had to the one person who could save them all. It wasn't that he didn't trust Aang... no, he trusted the kid with all of their lives. But a noticeable piece of Katara had died along with him in Ba Sing Se... the last thing Sokka needed was for his own support to give way again..._

_"We've gotten through worse," Katara said, almost willing her own confidence into Aang. "We're going to win." Aang smiled slightly, a vague appreciation of her efforts to uplift him. Not once, during the Avatar's two week lapse into unconsciousness had she ever harbored the same feelings of hope as she did now. Sokka slowly shook his head. Nevertheless, he kept right on walking.._

--

A slight shift in the bushes to his right jerked him out of his memory. His heart leapt into his throat for a split second as he struggled to focus on just what had moved in the blackness of the forest undergrowth. Slowly, he picked up a stick from the ground and tentatively probed at the foliage, only to reveal a large, dark, shiny object that appeared to be stationary. Brow furrowed, he trailed it up its strangely long body... only to find it belonged to another body. Eyes widening, he rested his gaze on the face of a looming Fire Nation soldier.

Sokka couldn't even gulp in fear. Yet, the man's expression was far more jovial than would have been expected. Seconds seemed to stretch interminably; the silence became ethereal as he waited for a word to be spoken. The man suddenly burst out grinning.

"Great day for a moon-watchin', isn't it boy?" Sokka stared incredulously.

"It's the best," he squeaked, cautiously retracting his hand from the boot. He must have been the source of the light he'd spotted in the distance earlier. For a second, he wondered why the soldier hadn't just attacked him, before remembering he had kept the Fire Nation clothes on. Relieved and reassured, he stood and decided to humor his interlocuter. Upon arisal, however, a wave of the man's breath hit him -- a warm mass of alcoholic air emanating from his mouth. Sokka tried to hide his grimace. _He's drunk._

"Say, is that yer lady down there?" Sokka froze, remembering the three he'd left at the other foot of the hill... but according to the soldier...

Sokka peered nervously down at their camp.

... there was only one. Toph.

"Um, yeah," he fibbed, willing to endure Toph's wrath if just to keep the man from trying anything with her. On one hand, Sokka was overly relieved that they had spotted neither Aang nor his sister... but where were they?

"Why don'cha get 'er up here wit'cha?" the man asked with a pronounced slur. Sokka barely heard. All he could see were the telltale green clothes Toph was wearing and the platoon of soldiers that were descending toward her.

"Good idea," Sokka responded, half running-half sliding down the hillside until he reached his friend. Toph lay on the floor, obviously exhausted as she hadn't even noticed his hurried approach. He shook her shoulder and crouched to whisper in her ear. "Whatever you do, _don't earthbend_." Toph's eye slightly opened and she frowned but quickly understood when she felt the vibrations of a group making their way toward them. "And take off your clothes." A resounding crack broke the area's stillness as Toph's fist made full contact with Sokka's jaw. He cried out. "Toph!" He yelled at first at her scowling face but then lowered his voice. "You're wearing Earth Kingdom clothes!" Toph's mouth formed a silent 'oh' and her cheeks instantly reddened.

"Oops." Sokka just threw a bundle of fabric into her face.

"Duck into the woods so that you can change," Sokka said, rubbing his swollen skin. He hoped the moon wasn't so bright so as to illuminate the color of her tunic and suspicious disappearance. "Next time I'm letting them take you away!" he called after her, grimacing at his pain.

Sokka turned back to the approaching troop feeling the unease mount in his stomach. His sister and friend had disappeared. Fire Nation soldiers had stumbled upon _them _of all people to find and didn't appear to be leaving anytime soon. Sokka sighed.

This would be one long night.


	7. Evasion

Well, here's another chapter – last one with major flashbacks. It's pretty much an end to this "section" of the story. It's been a huge thing to complete, and I regret not finishing sooner. Well, here goes. ;)

* * *

Zuko stood stiffly as he waited inside the foyer of the palace, watched by suspicious guards and the intricate designs on his home's regal walls.

_His home..._

Somehow, he thought it would have been different: returning to the place in which he was born, in which he grew up, of which he'd seen nothing else other until his... unfortunate voyage. Somehow, when he'd imagined the past, he only saw the sweet olden days of golden morning light shining upon the dewy gardens... always happy, always youthful, and forever safe... within his mother's arms.

Now, he realized that the halls were, in reality, dreary and so much grayer. The sunrise haze clung to his limbs and pulled them down as the scorching heat burned his lungs. Zuko could have sworn that these disappointments were attributed to the former Fire Princess's mysterious disappearance, and that it simply struck him more now... but he refused to let these anomalies affect him.

Hadn't even his uncle told him he'd become the prince he was supposed to be? How could he possibly have done that in that pathetic capital city? He'd had no choice -- he _belonged _here. And yet his uncle had refused him the option. He couldn't have gotten back into his father's good graces without having taken his sister's offer -- and hadn't he actually been successful for once? Working with her instead of against those he should be loyal to? Without this, without this restoration of honor and status he could not rule the people he was born to protect. His uncle hadn't understood. Of course he meant so much to him... but he had to take sacrifice into account. Zuko had a duty, right? He had learned long ago to obey _whatever_ responsibility he bore.

He had a job to do. It was right -- he would make it right. Somehow.

The large double doors opened at the far end of the room. The darkness beyond revealed a slim figure in dull red tones and hair swept up with multiple metallic fastenings. The robes were tied with a black sash, all of the silky fabrics trimmed in a regal gold.

It was Mai. Azula had rewarded them well.

Zuko quickly took steps toward her, finding some form of relief within him at seeing her though the verdict of the conversation in the throne room was foremost on his mind.

"What happened?" he asked brusquely, still irked at the fact that he'd been denied entrance into the very heart of the palace where his destiny lay. Mai, however, dutifully ignored his cold tone and proceeded to link her arm into his, guiding him away from the doors. Zuko refused to take a single step.

"Well, it's nice to see you too." Mai rolled her eyes.

"You know how important this is, Mai..." Zuko frowned. She hesitated and turned to look at him, a slight discomfort barely noticeable to any outsider, prominent to him in her features.

"Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Zuko's voice rose and his face twisted into an incredulous expression. "It's been over three years and he wants me to come _tomorrow_?" Mai pulled her arm from Zuko's and placed both hands on his shoulders.

"Relax," she stressed. "You've waited this long. It's late -- a few more hours won't hurt." She tried to force her calm resolve through her gaze for a few seconds before dropping her hands and trying to pull her boyfriend away again. When he still did not move, she returned her voice to its usual bored drone. "Do you really want to wait for Azula to come out and rub it in your face?" she deadpanned, sighing at the prince's stubbornness. Mai reached back and pulled him along with her as she walked off -- this time with no objection from Zuko.

--

_The travelers hadn't been given much repose until they took to the skies again. They never were anymore. The constant threat of the enemy closing in and the usage of an outdated strategy were only amplified by the fact that they had no contact:_

_Hakoda and the remaining Water Tribe warriors had left no trace of themselves at Chameleon Bay._

_Thus, the moon was once again observer to the souls who had to flee, souls who made sure they left but a fleeting shadow on the deserts and fields that rested far below. Every night bore the same ritual: Katara gazed at her brother, the convalescent Avatar safely tucked in her arms, and each time Sokka would turn to pass a glance over Appa's riders her eyelids innocently shut as if she'd been in a restful sleep the entire time... because Katara wouldn't dare inform him of the fact that every time he did so, she was actually perfectly awake. And Katara also didn't dare leave Aang without a watchful eye to keep track of his fevered body... no, she'd already failed him._

_Twice, a voice would remind her._

_And it wasn't ever happening again._

_Contrary to her belief, however, Sokka already had a suspicion that his sister was trying to fool him. True, she hastily shut her eyes when she saw him check on her, but not a minute later he'd look again only to find her head bent over Aang's still one, miraculously awake. He knew she worried, he was well aware of Aang's precarious health; it was so to his utter astonishment one night when he found Katara soundly sleeping -- and still doing so ten seconds later. Her hand wasn't carefully placed on his chest, it was sprawled out over his torso. Even her mouth was hanging half-open, mumbling incoherent words into the wind. Sokka almost smiled. It meant his friend was back to normal or had at least eased Katara's fears._

_But the sun was just peeking above the barren horizon and the time had come to halt their progress and retreat to the shadows of a forest once again. In all truth, it was amazing that they hadn't stumbled upon the Fire Nation just yet -- or the other way around. Sokka hoped things would stay that way._

_Appa quietly landed near an area of surprisingly lush vegetation. Maybe Katara would be able to get some water out of it, Sokka figured. Toph slowly got up and slid down to the dirt as if she hadn't even awakened. To the teenager's surprise, the Earth King even stooped down to pry Aang from his healer's arms and carry him to the ground. He wasn't looking for appreciation; he was more than happy to help._

_Lost in a maze of dreams, Katara gradually awoke to Sokka's blurry face outlined by a pre-dawn sky. He instantly pointed to the peaceful Avatar next to Toph as if he could read her mind. Her anxiety lowered instantly even though she was starting to wonder about her own fuzzy vision. Whether it was due to fatigue or induced by her pounding headache of three days, she wasn't sure._

_Wordlessly, she followed her brother off of Appa and took a bit of his tunic fabric in her fingers. She was now acutely aware of the weariness in her bones and incessant pain in her skull. Her mouth felt uncomfortably sticky. Yet above all, it was the unnatural spin her vision suddenly took and the fact that her knees gave way that forced her to realize something was definitely amiss._

_But it was too late._

_Sokka's shocked face was the last thing her eyes took in before the blackness claimed her conscious._

_"Katara!" Sokka grasped his sister around the waist, easing her down onto the moist dirt. He confusedly laid a hand on her peaceful face; she didn't have a fever. Her breathing was regular as well... so what was wrong? He ran a weary hand down his face. "Not you too." He sighed in defeat. This really wasn't their week._

_He ran over to Toph and shook her awake. She grumbled in annoyance._

_"What now?" she whined._

_"Katara passed out." Toph's eyes popped open._

_"Well why didn't you say so?" But she seemed genuinely concerned when she walked the short distance and placed a hand on the ground near her friend. The earthbender frowned. "It's like she's sleeping."_

_"Well, is there any water around here?" His sister might look alright... but something about it didn't seem to click. Toph nodded and pointed her finger toward the east._

_"That way." Sokka ran off. Her eyes widened when she detected something -- or perhaps more accurately someone also waiting at the bank of the creek. "Snoozles!"_

_But Sokka was already long gone._

_--_

_Rushing into the woods in the general direction at which Toph had pointed, Sokka failed to hear her slightly alarmed cry. He had to focus on getting water for his sister - for all of them - and besides the ambling thought that he may have been quite off in interpreting the earthbender's pointing, nothing else could penetrate his troubled mind. It wasn't surprising, therefore, when the cover of forest hid the dark-skinned figure from view until Sokka halted just a few paces away. Dew shone on his arms and shaven head while the still dark scene veiled the rest of him in hazy black mist. The warrior suspiciously eyed the man before him, knowing he must know of Sokka's own presence but wondering why he had yet to acknowledge it. Somehow, the mysterious person did not exude a sense of danger, most likely due to his notably non-Fire Nation toga, and Sokka felt comfortable enough to approach him, though hesitantly. The man in question abruptly disentangled his legs and spun around to face the boy, revealing a long white beard and a slightly wrinkled face. He bowed his head gently in greeting._

_"I have been waiting for you," he spoke up plainly. Sokka's brow furrowed._

_"Who are you?"_

_"I am Guru Pathik," he responded. "You are a friend of Avatar Aang." Sokka cocked his head confusedly before his face cleared._

_"You're the one Aang went to go see, aren't you? At the Eastern Air Temple?" The guru nodded soberly._

_"Indeed."_

_"How did you know..."_

_"I was led here. I knew you would need aid."_

_Aid... Katara..._

_"My sister needs--"_

_"I am aware," he interrupted. "She will be fine. But this stream has been tainted. It is no longer pure." He looked Sokka in the eye. "But I may be of assistance."_

_"Great... um... follow me." Sokka wasn't quite sure how to react to the guru. He had many questions to ask but he looked so ominously serious. That severity made him want to pose even more questions. He didn't know how to handle the situation -- and in any case, Katara was his priority. He signaled to the man and both made their way back to the rest of the group when a thought suddenly occurred to Sokka._

_"Wait," he turned his head to face the guru. "Can you help Aang too?" Pathik continued to stare ahead into the foliage with a faraway gaze._

_"I can no longer help him." The boy frowned again._

_"What do you mean? He's badly hurt and you can't do anything?" Sokka thrust his arms out to accentuate his indignant words._

_"He chose his own path... I cannot force my will upon him, just as I could not do it before."_

_"What... He said everything had gone fine..." The guru finally looked at Sokka, regarding him sadly as a sorry smile played with a corner of his lips._

_"I am not surprised." Sokka inhaled sharply in realization._

_--_

_The touch of the guru's hand on her forehead roused Katara immediately. She painfully opened her eyes as her dilated pupils adjusted to the sunlight, finding the wizened face of a white-bearded man looking down into hers. She hastily sat up as he pulled away, casting several wary glances at her surroundings and not seeming to be aware of what had happened to her._

_"What -- where -- who..." She trailed off, stumbling over her very words. A questioning look at Sokka did the trick instead._

_"You fainted right after we landed. This is the guru from the Eastern Air Temple Aang went to see," he stated. "Guru Pathik. He's a friend." Despite those words, her brother's face didn't appear very amiable; as if a shroud weighted his spirit. Pathik, similarly stoic, looked Katara over in grave cogitation. Almost as an afterthought he added, "Are you okay, Katara?" She nodded._

_"Is Aang--"_

_"He's _fine_, Katara," he replied exasperatedly. Katara hastily shut her mouth, reddening. She glanced at the stranger who then rose to his feet._

_"I should be moving on, now; so should you."_

_"But," Sokka objected, "we can't go anywhere in the daytime. Appa's too big and there are Fire Nation everywhere."_

_"I'm afraid you will have to leave the bison." Sokka seemed bemused by the man's matter-of-fact tone, Katara more so._

_"Aang would kill us! And we don't have anyone to leave him with... except you. You can take him..." Katara stiffened at her brother's words. She couldn't believe how trusting he was being of this so-called guru. Last time she'd trusted someone... She set her jaw resolutely._

_"What? We barely know you -- we don't have to leave Appa... we can... we can..."_

_"Snoozles is right," Toph interjected. "We're gonna need to get into the Fire Nation. We can't do that with Appa." The earthbender could feel the frustration bubbling up within her friend, but she also felt the sincerity of the guru... even if she knew he was keeping something from them._

_"When you need him again, he will find you. I'll make sure of it." Pathik turned to Appa and smiled. "It will be just like last time, won't it?" Appa grunted, noticeably at ease in his presence._

_"How are we going to get to the Fire Nation, then? We can't just swim across the ocean. I can't bend us all the way there, " the waterbender countered. The guru nodded understandingly._

_"Worry not. There is a Fire Navy ship docked not too far from here. I think you will find that the soldiers aboard are more Water Tribe than Fire Nation, however."_

_"Dad!" Sokka exclaimed. "He mentioned they'd thought of taking a ship and using it as a disguise." Katara, excitement tingling within her at the prospect, even allowed her expression to brighten a bit. "Then it's settled." Sokka climbed up to the saddle to descend their remaining odds and ends. He jumped back down energetically._

"_I would follow you so that the bison could carry Aang, but there is a Fire Nation town not too far from here. They would notice us." He handed Sokka a square of fabric from the small knapsack he carried. "You may use this."_

_Katara cast a sad glance at Aang, laying still on the ground, then at the bison. As she turned back to the boy, a thought crossed her mind._

"_Guru Pathik?" He met her gaze with his. "Can't you help him?" Her eyes seemed to gloss over with tears. Pathik sighed heavily._

"_I'm sorry," was the only consolation he could offer. Katara tensed, freezing when her brother's hand came to rest on her shoulder, expression conveying a silent message. He knew something she didn't, that much was obvious._

"_Let's get going." Sokka squeezed gently before removing his hand. He dropped their meager supplies to the ground and spread the fabric onto the dirt. "Give me a hand, Katara," he requested, motioning to Aang. She nodded. It wasn't long until they were on their way, carrying Aang on their makeshift stretcher through the woods of the former Earth Kingdom._

_Leaving the mysterious man behind._

--

Soft sounds of the night floated aimlessly around the two friends. The gentle brush of pushing through vines and grasses was occasionally accented by a step on a dry leaf and accompanied by the travelers' breathy exhales. Katara's peaceful face belied the fact that she was still somewhat puzzled by Aang's strange behavior as they silently walked in the pitch darkness... then again, Aang's thoughts brought him to a similar confusion. He wasn't quite sure what was truly bothering him, but he had a strong belief to rely on his instincts in this case. His lips slid into a wry smile. _At least they weren't Sokka's instincts._

Katara watched Aang smirk slightly as his eyes drenched in memory. She was grateful to see him at least amused by something again. Once she'd told him where Appa was during their earlier walk from the Earth Kingdom town, he'd been decidedly ornery... which he'd duly apologized for later. As to just why it had irritated him so, she was uncertain... she'd have to ask him--

A boom of laughter echoed through the trees -- Aang and Katara froze mid-step.

"What was that?" Contemplations shoved aside, Katara squinted through the foliage at several moving figures in the clearing ahead. Both crept closer to their campsite, careful to remain hidden from view as they watched the scene unfold. Sokka stood, face stricken, by a large Fire Nation soldier's side, nodding uneasily at his humored words and wincing when the man's hand clapped merrily on his back. Toph slouched at Sokka's right, looking furious until a soldier tripped over an uneven ledge on the ground. Then, beneath her loose black mass of hair, she grinned.

Aang set his jaw and tensed, but Katara caught this preparatory movement and reached out to grab his forearm before he took off out of the brush. He let out a startled yelp as his elbow jarred, Katara clapping a hand over his mouth. She glimpsed two soldiers turning their heads in their direction and yanked Aang with her as she dropped to her knees. He stared at her incredulously but she was first to get a word in.

"What are you doing, Aang?" she whispered harshly. Aang raised his eyebrows.

"Me? What are you doing? I have to help Sokka and Toph--"

"They don't know we're enemies yet. More importantly, they don't know you're here." She grimaced at the men's drunken antics. _I don't think they know much of anything right now. _"We can't risk anything."

Aang relaxed, conceding. "But are we just going to wait for them to finish? They're bound to find us."

"Who's there?" a voice called out from only a few feet away from them. Aang's eyes widened; Katara's breath caught in her throat. In an instant of panic, she considered yelling back, "Nobody" but on second thought they probably weren't _that _drunk. Trying to calm her nerves, she covertly lowered herself further, catching sight of a half open bag laying on the outskirts of the forest. Through the bushes, she could spot fabric that seemed to be falling out of it. An idea formed in Katara's head.

"Aang, start heading back to the river," she whispered as soon as the soldier had left their vicinity. Aang's head whipped around to face her.

"What? No -- I'm not leaving you here. I'm stay--"

"No, you're not," Katara responded with more adamance than either of them had expected. Aang involuntarily flinched at her tone and Katara mentally cursed herself. She hoped it was too dark for him to see her embarrassed blush. "I -- I mean... they can't find you Aang. I can't let anything happen to you..." _Not again, _her mind finished for her. The boy stared silently, feeling the weight of her words and gaze. "Just go, I'll be right back."

Before he knew it, she had sent a reassuring, if weary, smile his way and cautiously crept off to the left. Aang sighed, fully aware that he was becoming somewhat useless when it came to helping people. Grudgingly, he retraced their footsteps to the dark stream from which they'd come -- but only far enough to remain out of direct sight of the soldiers. He quickly ducked behind a tree to observe how Katara was faring.

The waterbender crawled along the edge of the woods slowly, stepping over twigs and hardly disturbing the crackling dead leaves on the dirt. She stopped when her hand found itself on cloth as she crawled along. Looking down, she saw a mixture of green and tan fabric... Toph's clothes. Comprehension dawning on her, she rolled up the tunic, placed it under her arm, and kept going. Her goal, unfortunately, was on the other side of their encampment and would take quite a while to reach unnoticed... she hoped Aang had retreated into the depths of the woods to stay safe until she returned...

Who was she kidding? He probably wasn't letting any of them out of his sight; Katara exhaled frustratedly. Honestly, what had she expected upon his return to consciousness? Joy? Pure happiness _just _to be around people he loved? Several months ago, under different circumstances, that's what she might have gotten. In this case though, they'd lost and they'd fallen hard. This was two weeks too many, twice too many times to have lapsed into the void of unnatural sleep. He'd grown up to such an extent since she'd first met him -- met the boy who was carefree and who taught her to laugh even through the world's pain. She felt sorry for him -- sorry for all that he'd had to go through... but it was more than that. Katara paused in a moment of saddening clarity.

She missed him.

--

Toph tapped her foot impatiently on the ground next to Sokka as they waited for the squadron leader to finish up his babbling so that they could all get a move on. Why were they putting up with this ridiculous nonsense anyway? Sokka laid an awkward arm around the shoulders of his "betrothed" as the man rambled on and occasionally felt free to mouth off a crude joke about women. Toph was stunned by her sudden ability to control herself; she attributed it to her knowledge that they needed to stay beneath the radar to survive. She realized, however, it was rather because it was all too amusing to watch soldiers trip over her earthbended irregularities in the dirt for her to leave now.

Still, she'd have preferred to not be here at all. The reeling senses within her were becoming all too conscious of her proximity to the boy beside her and this close, being blind just made everything worse. She could feel the subtle shaking of his hand as he nervously kept her near; she could hear the pounding of his heart as he forced himself to laugh; she could smell the rare scent of stale fear -- not for himself, she knew, but for the two people who were unaccounted for; she could smell the trails of sweat that had left their imprint along his body. It wasn't that she found this a horrible situation - though she would never admit to that - but it bothered her that because of this, all of his emotions were amplified in her two fold: the anxiety, the unease, the _heat._ No, Toph had never been so sensitive before, and combined with the fatigue, it was starting to drive her insane. It was all Sokka's fault.

"Who's there?"

The surprisingly sober call tore Toph's mind from her discomfort to the forest several feet away. She inhaled sharply. Had she been so distracted that she hadn't even noticed the approach of... Aang and Katara?

Yep. _All_ Sokka's fault.

Subtly, she nudged Sokka with her elbow, causing him to glance down at her.

"They're in the forest," she murmured.

"What's wrong?" Sokka was made painfully aware that he'd ticked off the leader when the man openly glared at the two, apparently not tolerating his interruption. Sokka's arm instinctively tightened around Toph.

"Er... my fiancée just remembered she lost some of her jewelry in the forest." He offered up a - hopefully convincing - apologetic smile.

"Oh." The man seemed greatly bemused but went on nevertheless, caught up in his tale. Toph went back to focusing on her companions in the woods, sensing Aang double back and Katara move along parallel to the rim of their camp. Soon though, Toph became lost in her own musings on how in the world they were going to escape this situation – before the platoon could shed enough of their drunkenness to coherently fight back. Things seemed to be going well enough.

Almost.

--

A rustle in the bushes behind Katara caused her to start and whip her head around. Nothing was there... but something wasn't right. Katara's heart skipped a beat. She turned forward again only to find she had lost sight of the sack. She was now in plain view, having left the darkness of the forest.

--

Toph's eyes widened. Katara had suddenly stopped mere inches from where the bag used to be...

--

"Looking for this?" a deep voice growled over her head.

_Oh no._

Katara took shivering breaths as she forced herself to gaze up into the steely face of a Fire Nation Soldier, whose hand held her target. Before he could alert anyone else, she quickly drew water from nearby vines and thrust it toward him, pinning the man to a tree behind him with ice. She swiped the bag and ran back into the cover of the forest.

But the damage had been done.

Toph sighed as she heard a soldier cry out, "Waterbender!" Sokka stiffened when he saw a dark blue blur racing through the trees. Their ruse was over. It was time to go.

The soldier next to Sokka had immediately turned to the woods before them, ordering his troop to find the "enemy". Both Sokka and Toph fidgeted nervously. Sokka knew they had to meet up with the missing half of their group before escaping -- something nearly impossible with the number of Fire Nation soldiers between them and the trees. Maybe they could sneak off or convince the commanding officer that they had to leave...

Toph, however, had other ideas.

"Hate to break it to you," she spat, fed up with the boring rigmarole she'd withstood and causing the dirt to swallow the unsuspecting soldier up to just above his mouth, "but it hasn't been a pleasure." She shot off into the woods. Sokka shrugged.

"See ya," he called over his shoulder as he followed the blind girl's lead.

--

Thorns and branches whipped across Katara's face and arms, but she ignored it. She had been discovered and the only thing that mattered now was getting Aang clothed and away from the soldiers. At least they wouldn't know he was the Avatar. That was something he couldn't afford.

Finally, she saw Aang step out from behind a tree trunk ahead of her, staring at her questioningly. He never had a chance to get a word in though.

"Take my cloak," she panted, throwing her garment off of her and into his arms, "and tie this around your forehead." She tossed him a crimson belt. Aang, having complied with her former request, scowled at the latter.

"What are you--"

"Aang," Katara interrupted, framing his face in her palms and willing understanding to reach him, "If they find out who you are, everything will be ruined..." He looked up at her wearily.

"How long are we going to run and hide from everything?" Katara tried not to let her heart break at his defeated expression. He realized he could do nothing. She sighed and hurriedly covered his arrow with the cloth, hearing the soldiers bear down on their position.

"Until we can make a difference, Aang." With that, she grabbed his hand and sped away from their enemy as fast as she dared. She hated doing this to the boy in his condition, but walking was something they couldn't afford and carrying him was out of the question. "We just have to make it to the river, okay?"

"What about," he panted, "Sokka and Toph?"

"Toph'll find us." She wasn't keen on having been split up like this, but she had to focus on getting the Avatar out of harm's reach.

The forest was a blanket, surrounding them and cutting them off from the cries behind them and the refuge ahead. Every stride away from the clearing was a grunt of pain from her injured friend and a step closer to refuge. Still, the sounds pursuing them became even closer still and she tugged on his hand a little harder.

She mentally sighed. At least when he'd been unconscious he didn't have to know how desperate they were. Where once they lived to fight, they now had no choice but to avoid and evade to simply survive. It made their loss in Ba Sing Se look exactly as hopeless as it actually was... and he didn't deserve to see that. It would make him feel that they'd lost everything they'd been working for in these past months. That's how it made her feel. But now, she realized, with him awake, they had to move on. They had to regroup and rethink their plans because they couldn't afford to let those weeks of uselessness repeat themselves... they were starting to do just that. But she also couldn't help the fact that for now, this was all they could do.

_Running. Running very far away..._

So, yet again, they fled. They stole away from the scene of a failed battle and wandered into the waiting arms of an uncertain future they had no choice but to embrace. It was a mantra : _There was nothing else to do, no other choice to choose_. They had to leave.

So, yet again, they did.


	8. Deflection

I am sorry to say this chapter isn't very long, but that couldn't really be helped. I just had to update today of all days, y'know? (sniff) To think at this time last year I was so very psyched and excited and hopeful... (sob)

Well, a folder with a bunch of my work got deleted recently -- fortunately the bulk of this thing wasn't in there or this would have taken for-absolute-ever -- but some stuff is gone so this did take longer than I wanted it to. I have _never _written an action scene in my entire life -- hence the utter lack in this chappy. Suggestions? Comments? Concerns? All are very much welcomed.

* * *

"How far away _are_ they?" Sokka's slightly annoyed cry was nearly drowned out by the sound of crushed sticks and leaves underfoot as they ran for safety.

"Just a little more!" Toph replied, equally irked. She could feel exactly where they were but their friends were going nearly as fast as themselves. _Can't he just trust me?_

"That's what you said five minutes ago," Sokka pointed out, but said nothing after realizing she had no intention of responding. Irritating Toph at this moment was most likely not the best idea. In fact, talking just served to further void his lungs of air, so he held his tongue for the remainder of the sprint.

_They've stopped running, _Toph noticed suddenly. They appeared to be alone, however, so they hadn't been caught... she only noticed that past them, the earth seemed to dip drastically and was packed down by the massive weight... Toph groaned... of water. Thankfully, the stretch from where Sokka and Toph were to the riverbank was only dotted with soldiers, obstacles easily overcome with a flick of Toph's wrist before they even knew what hit them. Soon, the trees thinned out and gave way to the dark expanse of the river. The two friends halted once they reached the edge. Toph frowned.

"Where'd they go?"

Sokka watched a figure swathed in blue and holding a somewhat smaller person to her chest, race across the river on a platform of ice.

"They're in the water." Sokka looked down at Toph and grimaced, knowing how much she hated these situations and realizing he'd have to swim with her in his arms to reach the other side. _At least we have a head start_, he conceded. Sokka made to pick up his companion but she, to his surprise, shook her head.

"Not this time." Toph's foot slammed onto the earth and thrust her arms upward to bring up a small wave of earth from under their feet. "Hang on, Snoozles," she warned ineffectively then shot forward in a running motion, the earth racing above the water and sending spray onto her clothes.

Sokka teetered backward before reaching around Toph's waist and desperately clutching at her, nervously eyeing the expanse of water below and behind them. Toph bit back a smile and rolled her eyes at his fear.

_Payback is sweet._

_--_

Katara panicked as she heard voices carry to her from the bank behind her. Her arms instinctively tightened around Aang and she managed to spur the ice she rode to move even faster. They had reached land not more than an instant later. She jumped onto it and turned, spotting a grotesque, dark figure riding a mound of earth. Eyes widening for a moment, she almost fainted with relief when she realized the silhouette was of none other than Toph, and Sokka hanging onto her for dear life.

"Finally!" Toph remarked as she stepped off of the wave, Sokka sent sprawling face first on the ground as he hadn't anticipated her movement. He glared up at her darkly.

No one seemed to know what to do for a moment, the extent of their efforts managing to catch up to them and leave them out of breath. Sokka rose to his feet, glancing behind to be sure that the soldiers hadn't followed this far. Aang heaved labored breaths and tried to ignore the piercing pains that shot through his chest, instead turning his attention to Katara's fingers digging into his left shoulder as if to assure herself of his safety. Looking up, he noted that she seemed oblivious to the fact she was still holding onto him, her solemn eyes deliberately scanning the water.

"Look," Toph spoke up, "we really should get going. I don't think it's going to take them that long to figure out the water isn't that deep -- and that there's a bridge not too far from here." Sokka and Katara both looked at the opposite bank again, faces falling when their gazes landed on the mass of soldiers on it.

"We've definitely gotta go," Sokka conceded. Aang remained oddly silent, features still drawn into a frown. Katara's earnest words floated into his ears.

"Do you think you can make it?" His gray pupils flicked up to meet hers for a moment before moving away, head bobbing in affirmation. She squeezed his arm then pushed him to run after Toph and Sokka.

Her hands glided through the air, fingers tensing and arms flowing to bend the moving water to her will. It wasn't long until those wading in the water found themselves flung back into the forest beyond by a bended tendril – with a fling of her arms out then up, a thick shield of ice rose to block the path through the liquid expanse.

"Let's go!" Sokka called to Katara, motioning with his hands. She turned to run toward him breathlessly, catching up to her other companions and skirting the base of a hill with them.

The stunned faces of a Fire Nation troop stopped them dead in their tracks.

For one palpably tense moment, neither side seemed to know how to react – what were the odds of the small group encountering two sets of enemies in a single night? But it didn't matter; it had happened and they had to deal with it. Fast.

Toph was first to charge on the offensive, raising a slab of rock from the ground to thrust at the soldiers. They, in turn, shot out a barrage of flames from their fists while gradually encircling the foursome. A split second allowed Katara to send Aang a warning cast – _Don't give yourself away! _her eyes cried – which he just as quickly shrugged off. Frowning, he appeared to heed at least some of her unspoken wishes by settling for a solid horse stance and a brusque punch in the air, raising earth from underneath a soldier but merely sending him stumbling a few feet away. The technique had lost its power under Aang's frail command – likely hurting him more than his adversary as he suddenly crumpled to the ground.

_You're too far away from him anyway. _It took more willpower than Katara had ever thought she possessed to leave him defenseless on the other side of the field and keep on fighting.

A spinning blur of metal easily downed two men, smacking against their armored helmets before returning to its owner. Sokka caught the boomerang in his race to Aang's body, Toph laying down a defense of rock pillars, Katara knocking over people left and right with a water whip. The warrior muttered indecipherable syllables under his breath belied by the utter panic in his eyes when he reached Aang. He hefted the younger boy over his shoulder, gaze flying over the field of mostly downed soldiers for escape. He spotted Katara's hands guiding her water back to its skin before she turned toward him.

"Come on!" she yelled desperately, letting Toph fall back to guard her brother and Aang while she ran ahead of them. The soldiers behind were coming to and the ones on the other side of the river had nearly finished crossing it. She made a sharp left into a thicket, pausing to listen for any more danger, but the only other signs of life were her companions as they caught up to her. They were off again.

"After them!"

Toph instantly recognized the voice of the troop leader from earlier, stunned that he'd been liberated from his dirt prison so quickly. She could feel the pounding of dozens of feet behind them and the drastic downward slope of the hillside they would find when emerging from the mass of trees. Toph lifted ground from under her feet as she ran, allowing them a little more time since the soldiers tripped on the uneven ground. Three pairs of legs quivered with effort as they flew up another incline that eventually plateaued. The earthbender, however, suddenly stopped short on the moist dirt.

"Woah!"

Her exclamation caused the siblings to also halt and hasten back toward her in case she needed help. Their wide blue pupils could barely make out her grayish form in the moonlit darkness.

"What's wrong?" Katara asked worriedly. Toph simply knelt to press her hand to the soil then straightened and drove her arms forward, palms facing her, revealing an ominous gape in the earth.

"It's a tunnel." The implications of Toph's matter of fact statement sunk in before the rest of her words were even spoken. "We can hide out in it!"

Hesitating only for an instant, Sokka made his way into it, the ground steep enough to make him lose his footing and slide the rest of the way into the black void. He yelped, Aang slipping off of his sore shoulder, both landing in a heap at the bottom with the – thankfully horizontal – machete that had flown out of its sheath. Katara's descent was much the same, her fall cushioned by her brother who let out a small "oof". Toph ran into the hole and jumped over her friends, lifting her arms to cover the entrance with their makeshift ramp as she went. Their pursuers shouldn't have been far enough up the hill to see where they had gone... The four of them waited with bated breath, hearing people stomp over the cavern until, finally, the noises faded away. Toph leaned heavily against a wall, Sokka and Katara letting out relieved sighs.

"We made it," Sokka panted. He let his head drop back against the floor. "We made it."

--

He almost had them.

They'd raced up the hill and he and his men followed, each bound minimizing the distance between them. The ground evened out before they knew it but his prey was nowhere in sight; they must have descended. So, he pumped his muscles even harder, reaching the summit and preparing to step onto the hill's decline.

The decline was nonexistent.

All of his weight had manifested itself on his forward leg which plummeted into thin air, giving way to a hefty drop. A fearful cry bubbled up into his throat as he took in the fact that he would soon flail into oblivion, the cliff side dissolving into a moonless nothing. The scream was cut short at the sense of sturdy fingers closing around his arms and pulling him back up.

"Captain? Are you alright?" the owner of one of the sets of hands spoke up cautiously as said captain collapsed from shock. Several other soldiers reached them and stopped, frowning at the heavily breathing man. Within moments, however, he arose, coming face to face with another officer covered in dirt.

"Where are they?" the officer boomed. He was more than furious for having been trapped by the earthbender and subsequently losing the two – plus that waterbender. Sobriety had mostly returned along with his rage, alerting everyone that he was a force to be reckoned with. The captain straightened once he recognized the person before him.

"Admiral Chou!" The captain bowed slightly – out of respect and out of need to avoid the vicious glare directed toward him.

"Where are they, Yin?" Chou growled through gritted teeth. "Why aren't you after them?"

"Uh," the other officer began, "you see--" But he was vehemently pushed aside by the admiral.

"How could you possibly--" He broke off as he reached the edge of the cliff. Pebbles disturbed by his boot rolled off of the ledge and into the seemingly endless drop below. Chou pulled back in surprise. "Oh." 

After taking a minute to survey the landscape and ease the slight spinning in his vision, he spoke again. "Are you sure they... that they went this way?" Yin nodded.

"Yes." Chou, however, didn't look quite satisfied.

"There's a river at the bottom isn't there? One of them was a waterbender."

"The drought dried up the ravine, Sir," Yin informed him.

"Then there's the earthbender... but she couldn't save them all." Scenarios were flashing through his mind, trying to assure him that they weren't to be worried about anymore. Not long into his thought, though, a pounding in his head reminded him just what he'd been doing before stumbling upon the duo in that forest clearing. He pressed his hands to his head and wordlessly walked away. Yin watched helplessly.

"Admiral? Sir?"

"Just... make sure they're gone... I'll be back... in a few days." He squinted his eyes against the pain. The ringing in his ears easily drowned out Yin's "Yes, sir."

--

Aang.

After catching her breath again and regaining some logic, it was the first thing that came to mind, like it had been for the past two weeks. The adrenaline that had rapidly left Toph and Sokka now found its way coursing back through her veins as she frantically whispered his name.

"Aang? Aang, are you okay?" She felt around, finding a warm mass not far from her.

"If you're looking for Aang," Sokka mumbled, "my leg isn't him." She didn't respond, only moved her hands from her brother to another limb lying still against a wall.

Knowing Katara was calling him wasn't quite enough to rouse him out of his weakened haze. The abnormal sensation of a touch traveling up his thigh, however, did a better job of waking him up.

"I'm up here, Katara," he croaked out. Thankfully, the darkness hid both of their blushes as her hand recoiled.

"Are you okay?" she repeated her earlier question. Aang winced, knowing that trying to _earthbend _of all things had not been the brightest idea and that the tumble into this cave hadn't improved his situation. Katara, realizing that a lack of response wasn't a good sign, altered her query. "Do you think you can walk?" Aang tested out his legs and arms before raising himself into a sitting position and using the wall to aid him up. He only lasted several seconds before grimacing as his knees buckled under his weight.

"Not right now," he responded breathily, slumping back down. Katara's heart sank.

"Maybe we should just rest for a while," she decided, pulling herself over to Aang's side and leaning against the wall.

"Great," Sokka cracked, "now we're stuck in _another _random cave. At least there are no singing nomads – where was Toph when you needed her?" He shrugged. "What is this place anyway?" Sokka had been trying to find any small source of light around them but had finally given up, resorting to blindly reattaching his weapon around his waist.

"It's a maze of tunnels... they all spread out," Toph informed them. She answered Sokka's question but still mulled over his first statement in her mind. It wasn't often that she asked about what had happened before joining the group... but Aang's odd reaction to that had piqued her interest. It wasn't as if they had anything better to do at the moment. "So, what was the first 'random cave' you guys got stuck in?" Yep, there it was, the telltale quickening of the Avatar's pulse.

"Some pass through the mountains to get into Omashu." Sokka just waved it off, though it was obsolete in the darkness.

"The Cave of Two Lovers," Toph spoke up. She felt the surprise of her companions pulsing as a wave. "Hello? Story of the first earthbenders? Everyone in the Earth Kingdom has heard of it at least once. So that's what you went through, huh?"

"Yes." Katara had decided to chime in, but with an unusual fluctuation in her voice. _So it's bothering her too?_

This was just too good.

"I will _never_ get near closed spaces with them again," Sokka vowed. Toph smirked.

"It couldn't have been that bad, Snoozles. You're the only one complaining."

"Hey, they were enjoying it right along with 'em! Anyway, they weren't the ones trapped with those people and their singing," he snapped. "Some cave-in just _had _to separate us. And then we were attacked by badgermoles -- who surprisingly, liked music--" Sokka warmed up to his story "--so we ended up riding them to the exit of the cave."

"Cool." But that still left... "So how'd you two get out?" Katara and Aang tensed, uncomfortable and probably confused at the appeal Toph had suddenly developed for their adventure. Sokka seemed to give a substantial amount of attention to what they would respond, leading her to believe he hadn't gotten much of the story either. Then again, at the time, he probably hadn't cared.

"There were crystals on the ceiling that lit up once the lights were completely out," Katara explained.

"That simple?" Toph pushed.

"Of course not." Now Katara was clearly aggravated. "We just wandered about for hours, thinking we were going to die in there."

"Okaay, I get it, touchy subject." Not that she hadn't detected it before. Katara seemed to be aware of that; she let out an exasperated expire before settling even more into the rock. The ease had broken with an audible snap, unexpected and abnormal. Sokka was clueless as to what had just happened, all of them feeling the strain of their anxiety... and undeniably some other imperceptible thing.

"Shouldn't we be going? I'm sure you feel right at home, Toph, but seriously, we should get a move on." Sokka rose to his feet after his comment.

"The soldiers are still up there. We can't leave now."

"Our best bet is probably the tunnels," Katara spoke up, a bit more controlled this time. Aang straightened himself a bit, uneasy with the idea.

"We don't even know where they lead," he countered weakly. He wasn't sure he liked the feel of this place and much less wanted to go explore it.

"That's what Toph's--"

"Wait!" the younger girl exclaimed, cutting into Sokka's retort. "Someone's coming," she said more lowly. Sokka's hand shot to his hilt but he rolled his eyes.

"Here we go again." He quelled his thumping heartbeat and took a defensive position in the direction he assumed said person to be coming from -- Toph turned and moved him to a spot on the other side of the enclose not a second after -- and Katara uncorked her waterskin, remaining by the side of her hurt friend. Five fingers clutched onto his arm.

A faint glow brightened with each passing moment from the tunnel quite near them. Soon, a dark figure came into view holding out a torch in front of him, appearing to be twenty or so paces away. Light couldn't have possibly been shed onto them from that far yet he paused and bowed for everyone to see.

"I know you are here and you need help."

The four were instantly rendered speechless.

"I mean you no harm and will be of assistance however I can." The man approached slowly, revealing him to be sparsely whiskered and middle-aged. All tensed save Toph who dropped her fighting stance.

"He's telling us the truth." Still, the unusual situation called for at least some suspicion.

"You have nowhere to go." The reverberation throughout the air was intoned as more of something to reflect upon than a statement of unbendable truth. "Follow me."

"We don't have much of a choice you know," Toph whisperingly informed her friends. Sokka sighed, ambivalent but not liking their present situation. Katara tended to agree with Toph and honestly couldn't sense any ill will coming from the mysterious man. She glanced at Aang. His face was lit just enough to make out the slight, unhappy turn of the corners of his lips. Even with her gut feeling, his dark eyes were enough to awaken the skeptic within her. Her voice tried to reach him, but Toph broke into the silence first.

"We should go." She was sure about this. Plus, her interest simply had to be quenched; what did all of these tunnels lead to anyway? Toph walked off toward the light.

Sokka and Katara exchanged wary glances but largely trusted her instincts. Backing away, Sokka wrapped one of Aang's arms around his neck, careful to support the younger boy's shoulders and not his back. It was meant to ease his effort but also to be a failsafe as the injured boy couldn't walk, much less run if need be, on his own.

Aang resisted only slightly, not having the strength or the audacity to voice the niggling twinge of concern rising in his chest. Perhaps, he figured, he was overreacting after all. He could barely place one foot in front of the other and that problem soon engulfed his tired mind

In any event, their other options had disappeared and as of now, they couldn't gain much by fighting. Six pairs of feet silently padded down the dirt path, mouths quiet, eyes curious, bodies weary. It seemed the best thing to obey.


End file.
